And They All Die in the End
by xiangli
Summary: "How do I do all this killing? I just remember that no matter what, there's no heaven for me. Not for any of us. So whether I kill or not, it won't matter in the end." Countries are being murdered, one by one. Who is the killer? Bad summary, I know. A lot of this fanfic is based off Seven Little Killers by Lucky-Angel135.
1. The Invisible One

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter One: The Invisible One**

* * *

Canada sat in his living room, petting his polar bear. He could never remember what the bear;s name was. Was it Kumatachi? Kumasaki?

The polar bear looked up at Canada and said, "Who're you?"

The country sighed. "I'm Canada. Matthew Williams."

The phone suddenly rang. Canada set his bear on the ground and stood up. "Hello, this is Matthew," he said as he picked up the phone.

"Yo dude!" Canada held the phone away from his ear. "The hero's coming over to your plave today, so be ready for my awesomeness!"

"O-okay," Canada said. His brother was always so loud; sometimes it frustrated him, but then he would remember: This is America. The world wouldn't be the same without his loud, somewhat obnoxious voice. "W-what time are you going to b-be here?"

"Dude, you just can't wait, can you? I'll be there in an hour, so don't worry! I'll be there soon, bro!"

America hung up. Canada sighed. "Kumasaburo, where are you?"

The bear looked up at him.

"We have to clean up the house. America's coming over."

Nodding, the polar bear plodded off to organize the room. Canada's house was actually very clean, and chances were that America wouldn't have cared whether the house was clean or not, but Canada still felt as though it was necessary to make his home spick and span.

Canada sighed. It had been a while since the last time America had visited him. In fact, it had been a while since anyone had visited him. He knew that the other countries had a tendency to forget about him, and he was used to it, but it still hurt.

He heard the door open then close. "A-America, you're early," Canada said. "Normally, when you say 'I'll b-be there s-soon,' it takes at l-least double the time you say…"

There was no reply.

Canada looked towards the door. Nobody was there, except Kumakichi, who was lying on the ground.

The country walked up to the polar bear. "Kumahiro, you shouldn't fall asleep on the ground, you could catch a cold…?" His eyes widened as he took a better look at the bear.

Kumakawa was bleeding extremely badly, from a wound that looked like a stab. He was breathing hard, obviously using up his last bursts of energy to live.

"No, no, no!" Canada shouted. "Relax, okay? I'll get some bandages –!"

The bear grasped his owner's hand, his paw already losing its warmth. "You're… Canada," he said, struggling to speak.

"Oh…" Canada's voice fell, shocked that the bear had finally remembered. "Yes, I'm Canada… Kumajirou."

Kumajirou closed his eyes and fell back. His paw, still held in Canada's hand, was deathly cold. His face could be described as peaceful, satisfied that in his final moments he had remembered Canada's name at last.

Canada choked and held the bear in a final hug. He wept, he tears falling onto Kumajirou's fur. Kumajirou was gone, now, and never to come back.

He heard footsteps behind him. He whirled around, still holding his bear, to face an unknown figure.

At first, he thought it was England, considering that the person was wearing a black cloak, but the hood was covering his head, which England disliked doing. In addition, he (Canada assumed this person was a "he", due to the person's height and posture) was wearing a mask that hid his face from view. The mask was painted messily, with paints of black, white, red, and gold. Where his mouth would be, the mask showed a mocking smile.

"You… did you kill Kumajirou?" Canada asked, voice trembling with fear and rage.

"The masked figure tilted his head to the side. His voice was electronic: "What if I said… yes?"

Canada screamed out his grief and anger, quickly putting Kumajirou on the ground and charging at the killer recklessly, without any sort of weapon.

Suddenly, Canada felt a pain in his heart. It felt as though he were burning from the inside. He tripped and landed on the floor, gasping for breath.

The killer knelt next to Canada, watching the country writhe in pain and claw at his heart. "That must be Ottawa, burning to the ground," the electronic voice said softly. "Looks like that match did work, after all." He leaned closer to Canada and whispered, "How does it feel to be killed, Matthew? How does it feel to die, and have your killer watch you slowly fade from existence?"

Matthew could hear the screams of the people living in Ottawa echoing in his ears. That was even more painful than the burning in his heart. "I will… murder you," he hissed, fury dripping from his voice.

An electronic laugh came from the mask. "Will you, Matthew?" The killer stood up, spreading his arms wide. "Go ahead and try," he challenged, still laughing.

Canada snapped, ignoring both the fire and the screams and charging at the masked figure again. He reached the killer, wrapping his hands around the other's neck and squeezing.

Another electronic chuckle, then Matthew felt a new pain erupt from his heart. He fell back, stumbling and grasping his chest. Blood covered the hand holding his chest, and then dripped to the floor.

"I'm surprised. You actually managed to get to me," the killer said, the electronic voice mocking. Matthew could see the killer holding a knife, covered in his blood. "No matter. I've won."

Canada glared at him silently, knowing there was no hope left. Unless… "Alfred," he said quietly.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" the masked figure inquired.

"Alfred should be here soon," Matthew said, slowly and clearly. "He'll help me. And he'll kill you."

Matthew swore he felt a tense silence, where the killer was frightened, worried that his victim might actually get out of this alive. But he recovered quickly. "You will have died by the time he gets here. As for me… I am satisfied with my work here." The killer watched Matthew for a moment, then walked to the door and left, disappearing into the outside world.

Matthew took a deep breath and dragged himself over to where Kumajirou was lying. He hugged the bear close, like he had done when he was but a colony, a child tucked in for bedtime.

"Good night, Kumajirou," he whispered into the bear's ear. "Sweet dreams. See you in the morning."

Matthew closed his eyes and smiled, snuggling into Kumajirou's fur. There, lying on the floor, holding Kumajirou like a teddy bear, Canada –Matthew Williams – passed into the void.

* * *

America chewed on his hamburger, holding the steering wheel in one hand and his burger in the other.

He had finally crossed the border between his country and Canada. Security was tighter than usual, he noticed. He was the only one allowed into Canada at that moment. He kept looking around, searching for a cause to the tight security.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a flicker of light. He turned to take a better look, but what he saw nearly made him crash into a barricade.

Ottawa was burning, flames licking at the buildings. America could hear the screams coming from the city. It all felt so surreal. The last time Ottawa had burned down, it was the work of America himself. It had given Canada a scar, and America didn't think it had gone yet.

Wait. Canada.

_Canada._

America slammed on the gas pedal, not giving a crap that he was way past the speed limit. He had to make sure that his brother was okay.

_Stop panicking, Alfred,_ he told himself. _Mattie's strong. He'll be fine._

His car arrived at Matthew's home after what felt like ages. Alfred kicked open the car door, ran to Matthew's front porch, and knocked on the front door impatiently, hoping that his brother would come to the door.

There was no sign of movement. Alfred became frantic. He opened the door, which turned out to be unlocked, and looked around the house. The house was incredibly clean, like always. Then he looked at the floor. "No," he gasped.

Matthew was curled up on the floor, hugging Kumajirou close to him, in a puddle of their blood. "This can't be," Alfred said, rushing to his brother's side and shaking his shoulder. "Mattie, Mattie, please wake up."

Matthew fell toward Alfred limply, giving Alfred a complete view of the stab wound in his heart. Alfred backed away.

"No, no, please, no…" he cried. "Not Matthew…"

Alfred wiped his tears away and straightened his glasses. He took out his cell phone and punched in a number, pressing the phone to his ear.

"What do you want in this time of night, you git?" a familiar British accent demanded.

"Arthur, I need you to calm down and promise you won't scream like the girl you are when I tell you this," Alfred said seriously.

There was a pause. "First of all, I'm not a girl," Arthur said. "Secondly, you haven't called me Arthur since before the Revolution. What happened?"

Alfred took a deep breath. "Arthur…" he began. "Arthur, Mattie's dead."

* * *

**Bwah, Xiang is back with a new fanfic! This is not based off of anything this time! It's Xiang's own imagination!**

**So, who is the killer? The possible people (who are either going to be the killer or be killed. I promise, the killer is in here): America, Austria, Canada (but he's dead), China, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Prussia, Romano, Russia, and Spain. **

**I do not own Hetalia. If I did… I have no idea what I'd do with it.**

**Reviews sound nice, so please review! And read my other stories too? Please?**


	2. A Meeting of Nations

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Two: A Meeting of Nations**

"America, just _what_ is going on?!"

"Why did you call this stupid World Meeting, you bastard?"

"Has Canada really died?!"

"Matthieu… mon Dieu."

Alfred was silent. Looking around at the other countries, he saw varying faces, from confused (Italy), concerned (England), angry (Romano), and shocked (France). He hated to have to answer questions, especially right after Matthew's death. He just didn't want to talk.

He looked at Prussia, sitting at the "Phony Nations" table. Prussia was completely soundless, facing away from the main table. Alfred thought it was to be expected; he had heard that Prussia and Canada had dated some time ago, but even though they had broken up, Canada's sudden passing must have still been quite a shock. Prussia's face was ashen, and instead of wearing his uniform, he wore formal mourning clothes. No one said anything against it.

France, in his own way, was even worse than Prussia. He was constantly wiping his eyes, whispering "Mon Dieu… pourquoi?" every so often. His hair wasn't in neat waves, but messy and scraggly. He, too, was wearing mourning clothes, instead of his flashy cape.

England, who had called everyone to the meeting, stood up. "Er…" he began, gaining everyone's attention, save France and Prussia. "I think we should avoid another situation like this. We don't want anyone else to die." He gulped, the stares becoming uncomfortable. "I-I was thinking of allowing the less strong countries stay with the stronger ones. A-and no one should go out alone."

"Are you trying to invade us, eyebrow bastard?!" Romano yelled, clinging to his brother.

"Yay, I get to stay with Germany again!" Italy said happily, not noticing Romano.

"I suppose that will work," said Austria, nodding his head. "I will be staying with Germany as well."

"Freeloader…" Germany muttered.

England cleared his throat. "In addition, I would like to know more about how Canada died… America?"

America stood up. "I went to his house yesterday to check how he was doing," he said solemnly, trying not to show any sign of weakness. "It was harder to get into his country, so I looked around." America paused; he didn't want to say what he saw next.

"Ottawa was burning, wasn't it?" France said. His voice wasn't the flirty, elegant tone that he was known for. Instead, it was rough and low, as if he hadn't used it in a long time.

America could only nod. France began to weep again. The other countries looked away from France. England frowned slightly. "Go on, America," he said firmly, but gently.

America took a deep breath. "I rushed to Canada's house and he was lying on the floor, next to Kumajirou. They were both… stabbed," he finished, struggling to say the final word.

Everyone seemed a bit paler after America had said that. "So," Italy said, not in his normal, light tone, but in a lower one. "The killer is out there. If he manages to destroy Rome, he could kill both _Fratello_ and I."

Spain, who was sitting next to Romano, paled even more. Romano stared at his brother.

"That's why it's important to stay with the stronger countries, Italy," England explained. "That way, they can help guard your capital."

"Okay," Romano said quickly, before Italy could respond.

"Furthermore," England continued. "Ever since Canada's… death, America has been managing both his country and Canada's."

"I'll help," France said, raising his hand limply and still looking half dead.

"Wha – Why you, Frog?" England exclaimed, unable to hold it in.

Silence. The other countries stiffened slightly.

France's expression didn't change. This was really scaring England now. "I know…" France said slowly. "You don't want me near America while he's in this state of mind, do you?"

"No, I don't! Who knows what you'd do?"

"I do," Spain interrupted. "Francis is in sorrow too, England. He won't do anything to America while he's mourning as well. Right, Gilbert?"

Prussia didn't respond. Instead, a small tear fell down his cheek.

"Anyway, you get my point…" Spain said to England, sighing. "I don't think that any of us knew Canada as well as you, Francis, Gilbert, and of course, Alfred. I think that you shouldn't let past grudges get in the way of helping everyone heal."

"Yes, yes, but what do we do about the killer, aru?" China piped up.

Japan nodded. "I believe it would be best to try and figure out who the killer is so that we can avoid additional deaths…"

"Agreed, Japan," Germany said. "I have a couple theories." He stood up. "First of all, the killer has to know Canada pretty well, so that they wouldn't forget about him as easily."

"Wait, that narrows it down to America-san, England-san, France-san, and Prussia-san. That's a bit overboard, isn't it?" Japan said suddenly. "Ah, forgive my interruption, Germany-san, but these four are the most mournful of all of us."

"Hm…" Russia murmured. "But Canada was stabbed, _da_?"

America nodded. Russia smiled his trademark frightening smile. "Then the only person I can think to suspect is England!" he said cheerfully.

"What?!"

"England, you were a pirate in the past, _da_?"

"Well, yes, but –!"

"That's why. Pirates are good with blades. If Canada was stabbed well enough to kill him before America got to his house, then the killer _has _ to be good with a knife!"

"But why would I kill Canada?!" England protested. "He was the best-behaved colony I have had!"

"Maybe Canada was being a jerk to you," America suggested. "Maybe he had been a jerk for a while now, and you thought that the only way to fix it was to kill him."

"I'm not insane, America!"  
"Maybe you wanted to stress out America by giving him Canada's work load, so you killed Canada," Russia said, still smiling.

"I'm not sadistic, either!" England objected. "The only man who would be able to come up with reasons as quickly as that is a guilty man! And besides, America called me in the middle of the night! How could I go from Canada's house, somehow fly across the Atlantic Ocean, and be at my place by the time America called me?"

"Dude, I called your cell phone," America pointed out. "You could have been anywhere."

"A-ah, let's calm down!" Japan shouted. America and England froze. "We're not certain that anyone's the killer. The facts are rather hazy, so it's hard to tell."

"But don't you want to know who the killer is?" Russia asked.

"Yes, but we can't put all the blame on England-san," Japan replied. "The border between Canada and America isn't protected very much, is it? So it'd be easy for America-san to get into Canada-san's house…"

"Japan, I thought we were bros!" America cried, regaining some of his normal self.

Japan shifted in his seat. "Anyone could be the killer, America-san."

"I hate to suspect all of you, however, Japan is right," Austria said, standing up. "I will take my leave now." He left the room, his footsteps echoing in the silence.

"I suppose he'll be at my house…" Germany grumbled.

"West."

Everyone looked at Prussia, surprised that he said anything. Prussia's eyes were more red than usual, but he was smiling – a small, mourning smile.

"I'll stay at Toni's place while Roddy and Feli are at your house, okay?" he said. "I'm just awesome like that. Give Roddy the basement, from Prussia with love."

"All right." Germany tried to smile back at his brother, but Prussia had already turned away.

Soon, everyone had their arrangements. Romano would be staying with Spain, who was more than happy to have both Romano and Prussia over. England decided to stay with America (probably because he didn't want his other ex-colony to be murdered), and America didn't protest. Russia and China were to stay together. Japan and France decided to stay alone, Japan promising to call China every night and every morning and France insisting that he needed time to recover.

"Also," Japan said. "We should give Canada a funeral."

The other nations murmured in assent. They agreed to have the funeral within the next week. Gradually, everyone left the World Meeting.

**Phew! Another chapter finished! Took me long enough to update, sorry to keep you all waiting.**

**Shout outs to: itsalollapalooza23, and Renegade!**

**I still do not own Hetalia. **

**Reviews sound nice, so please review! And **


	3. The Romantic One

**And They All Die in the End - Chapter 3: The Romantic One**

* * *

Canada's funeral was held to the north of his country, in an isolated yet beautiful valley.

For once, America, England, and France weren't bickering. They sat near each other, mourning Canada together. Prussia sat apart from everyone else, snapping at anyone who came near to him.

"Canada was the best little brother anyone could have," America had said. "he took a lot of hatred in my place. I feel bad knowing that he had to go through that. But if by some miracle, Matthew comes back... I will be the best older brother I can be."

England, too, had spoken. "I remember when he was my colony. It doesn't feel like so long ago, but... now, he's gone," he had said, slowly and carefully. "He was such a sweet child, as strong as America, but there was something about him - something that made Alfred and Matthew different people. Farewell, Matthew... I hope that we meet again."

After England, Prussia had stood up to speak. The German had faltered suddenly, falling to his knees in front of everyone, screaming for Matthew to come back. "Why?! Why Matthew?! Give him back!"

Germany had tried to calm his brother down, but that only resulted in more shrieking in pained German. It was torture for France to listen to his friend lose all pride and watch him shake with grief. France looked at Spain. Spain, too, seemed sick to the stomach. France and Spain stood up in unison and walked up to their friend.

"Shh, shh, mon ami, Matthew is living in peace, now," France had whispered.

"I want to be there, with him," Prussia had hissed in response. "Life without Matthew is Hell on Earth."

"Your time will come Gil," Spain assured him. "And Matthew will be waiting for you."

"Toni, Francis..." Gilbert said, his voice trembling.

"Yes?" they asked at the same time.

"D-don't leave me, okay? You guys are too awesome to die..."

Spain and France glanced at each other. There wouldn't be any guarantees with the mystery killer going around. "We won't," Spain said finally.

"Good..."

* * *

France drove home from the airport in silence. The freeway was quieter, with the final stragglers rushing home. France took his time, not wanting to go home. His house was full of memories, both good and bad.

But with Matthew's demise, they all felt bad.

Instead of going to his normal residence in Paris, he remembered that he promised Spain and Prussia that he'd stay in his home to the south of his country. There would be less memories in that place... but they were still there.

He reached the house within time, resigning himself to his predicament. The house was dark and cold.

France remembered coming home one day from another fight with England. He had put on some bandages so that he wouldn't look frightening to his colony.

_"I'm home, Matthieu," he said, closing the door. His house was abnormally black and freezing._

_ He smiled when he saw little Canada running toward him. "Frère Francis, you're back," Matthieu had said, louder than usual. Francis picked him up and carried him further into the house._

_ "What happened to your head, frère?" Matthieu asked, pointing at a bandage wrapped around Francis' head. _

_ "It's not that bad, Matthieu. Just a scratch," Francis tried to convince him. _

_ Matthieu ignored that statement and hopped down from Francis' arms. He left the room, coming back with some cut cloths and a bowl of water. He took the dirty bandages off, soaked a cloth in the water and cleaned the actually deep cloth on Francis' forehead. "You shouldn't fight with Monsieur Arthur so often," the boy said, rewrapping the wound with fresh bandages. _

France nearly ran into a wall, so absorbed in the memory. He felt himself tearing up again, but he shook his head, trying to clear it. Taking a deep breath, he walked into the kitchen, thinking that it might be a good idea to eat something.

_He woke up one morning to a smell - a strong, sweet smell. Francis walked to the kitchen to see a trembling Matthieu standing next to the stove. The walls were covered with maple syrup. _

_ "Matthieu, what happened?" Francis asked tiredly._

_ "Frère Francis! I-I was trying to make the w-waffles that Mademoiselle Bella showed me to make, b-but I tried to put the syrup in the b-batter, a-and it exploded!" Matthieu cried, running to hug Francis._

_ Francis hugged Matthieu, not even trying to think about how maple syrup exploded so much that it would cover the walls. "It's okay, don't worry. We'll work together._

_ Together, they made a flatter version of waffles - making pancakes. To Matthieu, they were better than Mademoiselle Bella's recipe any day._

Francis forced the memories out of his head. It was too hard to deal with them now. He had lost his appetite, thinking of Matthieu, so he decided to go to sleep early.

In his daze, he went to the incorrect room, making the first left instead of the second. Francis blinked, looking around. To his horror, he realized that he was in Matthieu's old room.

The room was dusty, since no one had used it since Matthieu had left. It was a simple, small bedroom, but Matthieu had liked it anyway. Francis' bleary eyes scanned the room, spotting a lump in the blankets on the bed.

The lump turned out to be a worn teddy bear. One of its ears was coming off, revealing the threads of several mends. A button eye was chipped. Fur was falling off in clumps.

_"Matthieu, why aren't you asleep?" Francis asked. He had come home later that night, and it was becoming a regular thing, since his boss kept him up, droning on and on about possible war strategies. _

_ "I was waiting for you," replied the colony, already in his pajamas and hugging his teddy bear._

_ Francis couldn't help but smile. "Merci, Matthieu," he said._

_ Matthieu was struggling to keep his eyes open. Francis lifted him up and carried him to the small bedroom. He set Matthieu beneath the covers, making sure that the boy was comfortable. Francis kissed Matthieu's forehead, whispering "Bonne nuit," then made to leave the room. _

_ "Wait, Frère Francis?_

_ Francis stopped at the doorway. "Oui, Matthieu?"_

_ "Don't work yourself too hard."_

_ Francis paused. Matthieu seemed TO READ HIS MIND SOMETIMES. Perhaps that Brit's influence was giving Matthieu telepathy? Francis sighed. "How did you know?"_

_ "You always do extra work at night," Matthieu said, ignoring his brother's question. "You should get more sleep, frère."_

_ "I'll try, Matthieu," Francis said finally._

_ "Good." Matthieu turned over. "Bonne nuit, Frère Francis."_

_ "Bonne nuit, Matthieu," Francis replied, closing the door. "Bonne nuit."_

He was openly weeping at the thoughts. Matthieu had cared so much for him, and Francis had done what he could to return the love, but what happened? Matthieu was forgotten, mistaken for Alfred. _Hell_, Francis thought pathetically. _They don't look that alike!_

Furthermore, as if the forgetfulness wasn't bad enough, Francis couldn't protect Matthieu when he most needed it. Now Matthieu - his dear Matthieu - was gone.

He stumbled out of the room, running into another wall. His tears were blurring his vision, but he no longer cared. Francis collapsed on his sofa, grasping his forehead and crying pitifully.

"Aw, how touching! France is crying for his dead colony!"

Francis sat up, looking around. The voice was unfamiliar, electronic. There was a chuckle. "Behind you."

Turning around, Francis found himself face to face with a mask. His eyes widened with fear and he scrambled away, keeping the masked figure in sight.

"It wasn't such a good idea to stay alone, now was it, Francis?" the killer mocked.

Francis flinched at the use of his true name. "Do not call me that."

"What, _Francis_?" The killer laughed. "Why not? You're going to disappear. Would you rather die under a false name, only known for what your country did? Or will you allow me to use your real name, so you will die known as Francis Bonnefoy?"

Francis said, "I am still immortal. Paris remains standing."

"Oh, are you so sure about that?" the killer countered. "The time will come. Paris will meet the same end as Ottawa." He let out a high-pitched cackle, causing Francis to shudder.

"Why?" Francis muttered. "Why are you killing us?"

The killer seemed to freeze. "Why..." he said slowly, processing the word.

Francis waited. The killer cackled again, abruptly, more shrilly than before.

"Because it's fun! It's fun to watch people's agonized faces as they realize that they have no chance!

"I killed many, many people in the past. For some reason, I found that enjoyable. But I do that now, and I realized - it has become boring to kill mortals. They knew that one day, they would fall. But with countries, they think they'll live forever!

"By killing countries, they realize that death is actually something to fear! And that fear - that sudden knowledge - creates the most beautiful expressions I could imagine! Let me tell you, Francis! You remember Matthew? Poor, innocent little Matthew? His face was magnificent! I regret nothing!"

Francis had been slowly sneaking away as the killer had been talking. He had nearly reached the door and was reaching for the knob when something hit him.

Paris was burning to the ground. Slowly, but Francis could already feel the burn, causing him to cry out.

The killer turned toward the sound, the twisted smile painted onto the mask seeming to grow wider. "Oho, you thought you could get away, Francis?"

Francis struggled to remain standing. He reached the doorknob and ran outside into the night, the killer at his heels. Paris fell down, slowly but surely.

"Caught you!" the killer screeched. He grabbed Francis' shoulders and threw him to the ground. Francis merely grunted in pain, but his mind was screaming.

"Death will always find you, Francis," the killer said, leaning so close to Francis that he could see the killer's eyes - dilated, insane. "No matter where you run, no matter where you hide, death will come after you. And even if you escape me now, I'll kill you later." Out of nowhere, the killer brandished a club of sorts. Francis could see a light flickering against the metal. "But why save for later what you can take care of now? Hm? Let's have some fun, shall we, Francis?"

Francis squirmed against the killer's grasp, but it was too strong. He saw the bat being raised and he squeezed his eyes shut, bracing for impact.

Spain looked out the window, staring off into the distance. The moon was full, he noted. He smiled to himself and hummed softly.

"Oi, tomato bastard, don't leave the water running! Actually do the dishes, will you?"

"Sorry, Lovi," Spain said. He continued to wash the plates and silverware.

"Tomato bastard, do you know where the potato bastard went?" Romano asked suddenly. "He's been gone for a while now."

_That's right, Gil went on a walk,_ Spain remembered. "I don't know exactly where, but he can't have gone far. If we need to find him, we will. Why do you ask?"

"His dinner's still on the table," Romano replied. "If he doesn't come back soon, I'm eating it."

"You really like my cooking, don't you, Lcvi?"

"No, I don't! I'm just hungry, tomato bastard!"

Antonio sighed, putting a plate away. He was happy that Gilbert and Lovino were staying over, but he wished that Lovi could at least be nicer and that Gilbert would stop being so distant. With Gil in that state, it was hard to tell what he wanted. Antonio had encouraged Gil to sleep - maybe that would help - but Gil just told him that a walk would do well. Gil had taken a small backpack with him and - not bothering to change out of his black mourning clothes - left.

There was suddenly a frantic knocking at the door and several rings of the doorbell. "Hold on, stupid bastards!" Lovi hollered, and went to open the door. Whoever was at the door made Lovi shriek in horror.

"Lovi!" Antonio shouted, worried that the killer had targeted Lovino this time, but it was only Gilbert, holding... Francis?!

"Oh my God, Francis!" Antonio gasped. Francis was limp, covered with swelling bruises and cuts.

"Toni, help me get him to the sofa!" Gilbert ordered. "Lovi, get the first aid kit!"

Antonio immediately helped carry Francis, and Lovino, not fussing over the fact that he was being ordered around by the "potato bastard", ran to get the kit.

"Oh my God, Francis, please don't be dead..." Antonio prayed.

"He's not dead, he's breathing... but Paris is burning," Gil muttered. Lovino came back with the kit and all three began to work on Francis' injuries.

"How'd you find him?" Lovi asked.

"We're staying pretty darn north," Gilbert said, rubbing ointment on a particularly bad bruise. "And Francis was staying in southern France. I found him dragging himself over here, and then he passed out. Last thing he said was 'Paris. Burning.' "

One of Francis' eyes fluttered open. "Gil?" he croaked.

"I'm here, Francis," Gil said. "How are you feeling?"

"Gil... I'm sorry," Francis managed to say. "I'm not... awesome enough to live."

"Don't say that!" Gilbert snapped. "You will live! My awesomeness is enough for the both of us, for all three of us!"

"Non, non... It's over, Gil," Francis said, his voice growing quieter. "Paris is gone. I am gone... Au revoir... Lovi, Toni, Gil."

"No!" Antonio and Gilbert yelled at the same time. Lovino stood behind them, covering his mouth in shock.

"Au revoir..." Francis murmured. "Et... À demain... Matthieu." He closed his eye. He stopped breathing. La République de France - no, Francis Bonnefoy - passed into the void.

* * *

**Agh, sorry this came out so late! Okay, just wanted to let you know that due to changing who the killer is, there will be more countries appearing!**

** A lot more. **

** In addition, I would like to clarify that it was York (a.k.a. Toronto) that was burned down by America during the War of 1812. Thank you for those who clarified that! I need to get my history right!**

** Translations, in case you didn't get them:**

** Frère - brother**

** Bonne Nuit - Good night**

** Au revoir - Good bye**

** Et - and**

** À demain - see you tomorrow**

** Okay, now for shout outs! Thanks to Demented Celery, MIRYBRAC, Hetalia Momo, marissamd, Reviewer Arthur, Dark Void Princess 21, MB4125, Kodamnation, and the Huntress101!**

** Reviews sound nice, so please review! Suggestions, comments, criticism, they're all welcome. And thank you all for supporting me! I'll try to update more often. **


	4. The Gentleman

** Xiang is here, with another chapter! Okay, so note to readers who have also read **_**Seven Little Killers**_**, you will find that there is a scene in this chapter that is somewhat similar to one in SLK. Credit goes to Lucky-Star135 for that idea. I try to come up with things on my own, but it never really works.**

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Four: The Gentleman**

* * *

Russia was sitting in his living room, listening to China complain about how dusty his house was, when the phone rang.

"_Privyet_, Ivan speaking," he said into the phone, smiling.

"Dude, Russia, we're having another world meeting!" America said, his voice sounding a bit panicky, causing Russia's smile to fade.

"Huh? But we had one last week."

"Didn't you hear? France died!"

Russia paused. Somehow, he didn't feel so surprised that France was next. "Oh, no, I did not hear…" he murmured. "Where and when is the meeting?"

"We're planning on having it at Iggy's place, at one o'clock New York time tomorrow." Russia could hear England yelling "Do not call me 'Iggy', you dolt!"

"London… okay. But America," Russia said. "Isn't England one of the suspects?"

"Nah, he wasn't there when France was killed! He was too busy crying," America laughed.

"You were crying too, you hypocrite!" England snarled.

America sighed. "I admit the deed. Okay, Russia, see you at the World Meeting, bro!" He hung up.

Russia put down the receiver. "What's wrong, aru?" China asked. "You seem worried, aru."

"France is dead," Russia replied.

China froze. "D-dead, aru?"

"_Da_, Yao. Dead."

"That was America, right?" China said. "How do you know it's true, aru? America has told lies many times, aru."

"We could call someone closer to France," Russia suggested. "Prussia or Spain, maybe."

"Not Prussia, aru. He's either completely silent or gone mad, aru. Two people who are close to him have died, aru. Better Spain, aru." China took the phone and dialed Spain's number.

"_Hola_, Russia, or is this China?" a dull voice said. Russia listened closely to the conversation.

"This is China, aru. Is it true, aru? Is France…"

"He's dead, you heard right," Spain interrupted. Russia and China heard a sob from the background.

"I-I'm sorry, aru," China said.

"I'm all right… I'm more worried about Gil."

"That makes sense, aru. See you at the world meeting, aru."

"_Si, adios_…"

China put down the phone. "He really is dead, aru," he said. "Poor Prussia, aru."

"Prussia will be okay soon," Russia said. "He's strong. He'll want to help find the killer."

"How do you know, aru?"

"He lived with me before, remember?" Russia reminded him. "No matter what I told him to do, he never complained, but he kept a solemn face. And work at my place is very hard, you know!"

"Oh, aru…"

Russia smiled. "Come; let's get ready for the meeting. I'll book rooms for each of us."

* * *

It was the day of the world meeting, and Gilbert was headed toward the door, a suitcase in hand. "Gil, where are you going? We don't have to leave anytime soon." Spain asked.

"I'm going to investigate Francis' house a bit, to try and find clues," he replied. "Then I'm meeting up with Alfred at London. We're both going early."

Spain frowned slightly, but shrugged and said, "Okay, see you tomorrow, then."

Prussia grinned, did a salute, and walked out, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Prussia arrived at France's southern residence not too long after he left Spain's northern one. He entered the house, looking around.

_Nothing seems to be left here,_ he thought. _There was a trail of blood on the stone path, but that was outside of the house, so that doesn't matter. I had found Francis by then._

Somewhat disappointed, he found Francis' car keys, took them (leaving a note that he borrowed the car), and drove to the airport.

* * *

Germany packed his things and fixed both Austria's and Italy's suitcases in preparation for the world meeting. He had received word from Spain that Prussia had gone to London early.

He was a bit suspicious of England. Russia had an excellent argument against him, and Germany found that he could be right. Even with America protesting that England was at his house during the killing of France, Germany was doubtful of England's innocence. England had claimed to have powers of some sort, so it was probably possible to appear in one place and appear in another place within a matter of seconds, using magic. The chances that Russia was right about England were rather high.

"Austria, Italy, let's go. We have to get to the airport early," he called.

"Okay, Germany!" Italy said, running down the stairs and nearly tripping over his own feet. Germany sighed in exasperation. Really, could anyone be more useless?

"One moment! I cannot go into public looking as miserable as this!" Austria shouted from the washroom.

Germany frowned. Apparently, Austria _was_ more useless than Italy sometimes. And then again…

Italy had decided to take a siesta while waiting for Austria. He curled up on a chair and fell asleep promptly. Germany groaned and yelled, "Hurry up, would you? I don't have all day!" while tapping his foot impatiently.

"Goodness, someone's irritated," Austria remarked. He walked out of the washroom, looking prim and proper as always.

"Italy, get up," Germany growled. "We're leaving."

Italy jumped up, grabbed his suitcase and saluted to Germany. "Yes, sir!"

Germany couldn't help but smile a bit. "Let's go."

* * *

Everyone arrived at the airport in England around the same time, except England, America, and Prussia, of course. They all chattered with each other, making sure that their family members haven't been attacked, expressing theories.

As the taxis drove them to London, Romano, Italy, and Spain talked a bit, checking in.

"I can't believe that _Fratello_ Francis was next…" Italy said. "You two are okay, right?"

"I am," Romano replied.

"I'm not perfectly fine, but I'm not freaking out like Gilbert was…" Spain said. "My capital's safe, if that's what you mean."

"That's good. After the world meeting, we should eat pasta together," Italy suggested.

"We haven't done that in a while! It'd be fun!" Spain added, a smile taking over his features. "What do you think, Lovi?"

"Sure… but what's that smell?" Romano asked suddenly.

"Italy took a whiff of the air, then coughed, flinching in alarm. "Smoke."

"Mr. Taxi Driver, please hurry to London," Spain said quickly. The driver nodded and started to drive a bit wilder, moving into any space on the road found.

"Why London of all places?" Italy sighed, putting his head in his hands. "It was fortunate for all of us, since all of our flights were delayed."

"What about Brows Bastard, Hero Bastard, and Potato Bastard?" Lovino piped up.

"But Ludwig was on the same plane as me, Lovi!" Feliciano reminded him.

"No, no, Potato Bastard number two! The original potato bastard's brother!"

"Gilbert," Antonio breathed. "Oh my god, please let him be alive."

"Berlin's safe," whispered Feliciano. "He should be fine."

The taxi reached London at last. Antonio paid the driver quickly and the group rushed out of the car to meet a burning city. Soon after, China, Japan, and Russia arrived. Few minutes had passed when Germany and Austria came to the scene.

Prussia was there before anyone else, safe, but trembling at the face of the flames. Germany hurried over to him and embraced him. "Thank God, you're safe."

Prussia still trembled, although the tremors were less violent. "America went to save England," he said in a low voice.

"What?!" everyone exclaimed.

"You heard me… England was in his house, in there." Prussia pointed at the fire. "America and I got here at the same time. He went to save England."

Everyone was silent, except Japan, who muttered a line – maybe a prayer – in his language. Then the other countries began to murmur similar phrases, wishing both England and America luck.

From the fire emerged a shadow. The countries tensed as one, then sighed in relief when it turned out to be America. In his arms lay England, barely breathing.

Russia immediately stepped forward and took England into his own arms, being stronger than America at that moment. China called an ambulance.

"America-san, why did you…?" Japan asked hesitantly, allowing the taller country to lean on him.

"I came here and London was burning," he replied, stopping to cough. "Canada and France are gone now… so the only family I have is Iggy. I couldn't leave him."

The ambulance came. Russia helped load England into the van. The doctors, who were notified that these people were countries, had America ride with England – not only because he had to be checked for potential chemicals in his system, but also because they were similar to family. The remaining countries took taxis to their hotel.

* * *

America sat on his hospital bed, reading a boring newspaper. Now he knew why Japan said Western newspapers were sad – there really was only bad news. He glanced over at England, who was lying on a bed on the other side of the room. A heart monitor beeped steadily; slowly, but it proved that England was hanging on to life. It made America a bit happier, that England wasn't giving up.

He heard voices outside the door; two voices arguing. After some time, Japan stepped into the room, accompanied by Prussia.

"_Hallo_, America," Prussia said. "I've underestimated you. You really are awesome. Not as awesome as me, but close."

"Thanks, man. What's up with you two?" America asked.

"We wanted to know how you and England-san were doing," Japan replied quietly.

"Are we going to reschedule the world meeting? We could have it at my place; it's safer and I could always install higher security," America offered.

Japan and Prussia looked at each other. "The world meetings… we're not going to have them anymore," Japan said.

"What?! When did you decide this?"

"Over the phone last night," Prussia answered. "It's too dangerous to have them anymore."

"You've got to be kidding me!"

"We're not joking, America-san," Japan confirmed. "It's been decided for the best. America-san, please listen to me," he added when America tried to protest. "During world meetings, all of us are in one room. It would be so easy to just take down the entire building and force us into near death. And while we're attempting to recover, the killer can burn our capitals. Then we'd all be gone."

"But…" America looked down at his hands, which were clasped in his hands. "You're right, Japan. It just feels like we'd be in more danger without the world meetings."

"I get what you're saying. Some of us tried to argue for the world meetings, but Germany-san put up an incredible argument."

Prussia looked over at England. "How is he?"

America didn't look up. "He's in a coma."

Japan's eyes widened. "No."

"Yes, he's in a coma," America repeated, beginning to shiver in misery. "Too much smoke and too little oxygen. That would have killed a normal human."

The heart monitor beeped in the silence.

"I'm glad he's alive, though," America continued. "Otherwise, I'd be alone." He looked at Prussia. "I know how you feel, dude. With all these people gone, people need to have a hero…."

"Are you planning on being one?" Prussia asked.

"Of course! You should try it too!" America said. "The reason why people are so nice is because they've gone through a lot, and they don't want anyone to go through what they've experienced! Gil, there are people in this world, and you definitely care for them too. Be a hero!"

Gilbert seemed a bit surprised – probably because he didn't expect those wise words to come out of Alfred, of all people – but he eventually grinned back.

"That's the spirit!"

Someone knocked on the door, causing the three countries to stiffen. "Visiting time is over," a nurse said, coming into the room. "I'm sorry to kick you out, Mr. Japan and Mr. Prussia, but this is my job."

"We understand," Japan assured her. "Please continue to take care of America-san and England-san." He turned back to America. "Get well soon, America-san. Prussia-san, let's go."

America watched them leave and listened to their footsteps fading away. Then all he could hear was the slow _beep_ of the heart monitor.

* * *

"Poor England-san," Japan whispered as the taxi drove Prussia and him to their hotel. "And America-san, too, but…"

"Yeah," Prussia said, fiddling with his fingers. "But at least they're not dead."

"That's true," Japan smiled, an even smaller smile than his normal one. "There's still a chance for England-san."

"Mm-hm." Prussia turned and looked out the window. "Once his people rebuild London, he should be fine."

"Now that world meetings are no longer happening," Japan said, trying to sound nonchalant. "China-san is going to have me call him more often…"

"It's because you're living on your own," Prussia pointed out. "It's not only because of the meetings, it's also because Francis was on his own, a-and the killer decided to… you know, target him next."

"Prussia-san?"

"Yeah?"

"That's an excellent theory," Japan said carefully, looking at Prussia in the eye. His expression was thoughtful, like he was calculating something. "But how do you know so much about the killer?"

"I, well, it's a rather obvious idea," Prussia replied, scratching his neck. "I've seen it in a lot of mystery books. And also, I'm just awesome like that!"

Japan still looked thoughtful, but he murmured an "I see" and looked out the window.

Their taxi arrived at their hotel. Japan insisted that he pay the driver, and then they walked into the building to meet their peers at Germany's room.

Prussia knocked on the door. After a few minutes, they were allowed in. Once the door had closed, the countries bombed them with questions.

"Is England all right?"

"How's America doing?"

"Did you find out anything about the killer?"

"Stop, stop!" Japan shouted. "Let me see… America-san is fine, now, and he should be released soon." The countries sighed in relief. "England-san, however, is not as fortunate. He's in a coma."

Someone gasped, but the others looked at each other nervously, suspicious of everyone. "Did you find anything out?" Germany asked finally.

"No," Prussia said, since Japan had felt finished speaking. Japan sank into a chair and, ignoring his usual proper self, drew his knees closer to himself and hugged them. "America didn't mention anything," Prussia continued.

There was an uncomfortable silence. Then Austria sighed. "I'm heading out," he announced. "I need rest. This is too stressful for me right now. I have a concert soon, so good night to you all." He pushed everyone out of his way and left.

"We're all heading back to our own countries tomorrow, aren't we?" Germany asked.

Everyone nodded.

"I suggest that we all get plenty of rest," Germany said. "We should continue to communicate with each other via Skype. There will be mandatory meet-ups on Saturdays, 9:00 AM New York time. If you have business, contact someone beforehand."

With that, everyone filed out of Germany's hotel room and returned to their own except Prussia, who was sharing with his brother.

"Do you think that the world will be okay soon, Gilbert?" Germany sighed. "I can't believe that this is happening… Even Japan's freaking out."

"I don't know, Ludwig, I don't know," Gilbert admitted. "I just hope the world will be okay one day."

"Well, _gute nacht_, then… get some sleep, okay?" Ludwig said, turning off the lights and settling into his bed.

"Good night, Luddy," Gilbert murmured, tucking himself into his own bed.

* * *

Japan arrived back at his home the next day, perfectly on time. His boss had been worried about him, since the destruction of London had gone all over the web.

After several hours of being lectured by his boss about the brand new security measures and personal safety, plus the work that had piled over the two days that he had been gone, Japan finally returned to his home. His dog, Pochi, wandered up to him, yipping and yapping for his attention.

"Are you hungry?" Japan asked. Pochi wagged his tail in response. "All right, I'll get you something."

He fed Pochi some food, then sighed and lay on his sofa. He watched Pochi gobble the food hurriedly, and then said, "Slow down, nobody's going to steal it from you." Pochi reluctantly slowed down.

The phone rang suddenly. _Probably my boss_, Japan thought reluctantly standing and grabbing the wireless phone. "_Hai_, Kiku speaking."

"Japan, do not move," an electronic voice said. Japan froze, and then slowly walked toward the sofa, where his phone was sitting.

"Ah, ah, I can see you; you're going to get your cell phone." Japan froze again.

"How can you see me?" he inquired carefully.

"I placed cameras in several places within your house," the electronic voice said. "I can see your every movement."

"Just who is this?" Japan demanded.

"Good question; I haven't come up with a nickname for myself," the voice said thoughtfully. "Let me just say this: I'm the killer. You may call me Fate. Heehee, that's a good name, I think!"

Japan stopped, mouth agape. Fate chuckled.

"Too shocked to speak? Well, I'll make this quick. You do as I say, and I won't attack Tokyo quite yet. But if you disobey me, Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei, and Hong Kong are going to be wiped off the map. Go to your room, you'll find my number there. Call me!"

Fate hung up. Japan raced to his room. On the wall was a phone number, written in blood.

* * *

**Okay, that was really long. At least I got it done. **

**Translations (a lot of these are pretty obvious, but might as well):**

_**Privyet – **_**Good Morning (I believe, if any of you know Russian, please clarify for me?)**

_**Da – **_**Yes**

_**Hola – **_**Hello**

_**Si, adios **_**– Yes, goodbye**

_**Fratello**_** – Brother**

_**Hallo – **_**Hello **

_**Gute Nacht – **_**Good night**

_**Hai**_** – Yes**

**SHOUT OUTS TO: Dark Void Princess 21, KitKat8965, Doom the Sandwich, Joker of Clover, theHuntress101, Purestrongpoem, RinzlerKitty94, PastaandPotatoes, and Darkthorn998! Your support is highly appreciated!**

**I still don't own Hetalia, unfortunately. I think that if I did, Hetalia would be extremely boring and/or depressing.**

**Reviews sound nice, so please review for me? Reviews motivate me, so…**


	5. The Top Hat and the Cape

**Xiang here with Chapter Five of **_**And They All Die in the End**_**! So, most of this chapter is based off a scene in **_**Seven Little Killers**_** by Lucky-Angel135, again. I hope you still enjoy!**

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter 5: The Top Hat and the Cape**

* * *

Japan took one horrified look at the blood-stained wall, dialed the number, and held the phone to his ear, trembling with fear.

"I knew that you'd call me soon enough, _Kiku-chan_," Fate mocked. "Have you decided yet?"

"What do I have to do?" Japan said, trying to stay calm.

"Oh, wonderful, you will help me!" Fate exclaimed. "It would be quicker to take out China, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, _and_ you at once, but this is more entertaining!"

"Just tell me what I have to do," Japan growled.

"Ooh, _Kiku-chan_'s mad!"

"Do not call me 'Kiku-chan'!"

"Kiku-chan, calm down. I'm going to help you," Fate said, in this falsely soothing voice. "I'll let you destroy the cameras. Just follow my directions.

"The first camera you'll find is where you picked up your wireless phone that first time I called. Go on over there."

Japan walked to the living room, to the table where he had previously got the phone. "I don't see any cameras."

"Remember, Kiku-chan, they're hidden!" Fate reminded him. "This camera is hidden in that picture on the table."

Japan picked up the painting. It was a simple drawing of a rabbit, one he had drawn before China had introduced kanji to him. It was one of the only memories of that time.

"Kiku-chan, all you have to do is destroy it beyond repair," Fate said cheerfully. "Can't be that hard. Burn it, smash it, whatever you like."

"But…" He didn't want this to go away. So many memories were stored in that one painting. Why would he destroy it?

"You don't have to, of course, but if you don't, I'm off to burn Beijing."

Japan took the painting and stared at it for a while, memorizing every curve, every detail. He hugged it close to his heart and walked outside.

"Hurry up, Kiku-chan. I don't have all day."

He grabbed some matches and set some logs on fire. Once the flames were large enough, Japan threw the picture into them, watching it turn into mere ashes.

"Good job, that's the first one of the cameras down! Now head back inside, into the attic this time."

Japan numbly followed the orders. The attic was dusty, but there were many items stored in the room.

"I can see you! This camera you'll find in the far side of the attic. Go on, go on."

Japan moved toward the back of the attic. He hated that section of the room – he put all of the bad memories in there.

"You see that kimono over there?" Fate asked.

Japan figured that the killer was referring to the kimono hanging farthest away from him. It was the kimono that he had forced Hong Kong to wear while the region was in his possession. Seeing it reminded him of the cruel things he did to the poor colony – no, not only Leon, but everyone.

"Burn it."

Japan hesitated, not wanting to touch the fabric.

"Or Hong Kong will be destroyed."

He took a deep breath, took the kimono and ran back outside to where the fire was still burning. Just by touching the silky clothing, he could remember the screams of the Hong Kongers as their homes were taken down. He remembered Hong Kong's cold glare, saying with his eyes alone:

"_I'll never forgive you._"

Then Japan remembered the last time he had gone to China's house. Hong Kong was there, and when the region had seen Japan, his expression had hardened, and he had gone on his way.

One war had destroyed the relationship between the brothers. They had been on good terms before: They were both expressionless people, rarely showing others their thoughts. Somehow, they understood one another. But after that accursed war, Hong Kong avoided Japan like the plague, and the only emotion Japan saw Hong Kong express was pure anger.

Japan finally reached the fire. He ripped the kimono to shreds and threw the pieces into the flames, which eagerly swallowed the fabric.

He could hear Fate's electronic laugh. "Good work, Kiku-chan! Now, let's go to your garden, there."

Kiku felt empty. He dragged himself to the indicated location, his legs feeling like lead.

"The third camera is in that birdhouse, hanging on that tree."

The birdhouse… it was the one that he and Taiwan had constructed together. Kiku remembered how a blue bird kept following Mei around, so they decided to make a house for it.

He reached the birdhouse, memories of Mei's smile and laugh echoing in his mind. Kiku didn't hesitate this time, taking the birdhouse off its branch on the tree. What use was a birdhouse anymore? He was saving Mei's life!

Kiku took the birdhouse near to the fire, dropped it in front of the blaze and stepped on it. It broke under the weight of his foot, the old wood succumbing to the force without protest, as if the memories _wanted_ to leave. He kicked the splinters into the fire.

"Wonderful, Kiku-chan, you just saved Taipei!" Fate cackled. "One last thing."

Kiku didn't respond.

"Go to your bedroom."

He did as he was told.

"The final camera is in that picture, on your nightstand."

Kiku stared at the photograph. It was a more modern one, taken just a couple years ago. China, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong were all sitting next to each other, all smiling for a change. Then right as the camera was about to take the picture, Korea jumped in front of everyone, so that most of the picture was his face.

He reached for the photo, but the hesitation returned. His arm paused, still stretched out in midair.

"What are you waiting for? I can go ahead and bomb Seoul, if that will speed you up."

Kiku snatched the photo, ran to his bedroom window, and threw it outside. He heard the frame break and the glass covering shatter. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, he went outside to where the photo was, took it out of the useless frame, and tore it down the middle, so that Korea's smile was in two parts. He ripped it again, and again, and again. Once the photograph was in miniscule pieces, he poured the shreds into one hand and let the wind blow them away. He crushed the glass more, not registering the sound of the fragile material cracking under his feet. Finally, he took the remains of the frame and placed them in the inferno.

"Excellent! Now all of the cameras are gone! But I have one request of you," Fate announced.

"What is it?" Kiku said, voice monotone.

"Washington D.C. – I want you to destruct it."

Kiku nearly dropped his phone. "What?!"

"You heard me, Darling. Take down D.C. for me."

"But… why?"

"Just do it, Kiku," Fate ordered, his electronic drone dangerous. "To save the lives of your siblings. And yours, as well. Taking down one life for the sake of five… it's not that much of a sacrifice, don't you think?"

Kiku didn't say a word. He could almost see Fate's grin, though the killer was communicating through the phone.

"There, there. It will all be okay soon, Kiku-chan."

Fate hung up. Kiku stood in his yard, alone, still holding the phone to his ear. He slowly lowered the phone and trudged toward his home, as if walking against a current. Kiku threw the phone into the fire, not wanting to see the item again.

He entered the house and went to the living room. On the wall hung his old katana, the one he had used to attack so many of his fellow countries. He had vowed never to use the blade again except in an emergency.

Kiku classified this situation as an "emergency".

He tore the sword from its place on the wall and left his home. As he walked toward his car, Kiku stepped on a small piece of paper. If someone were to take that piece of paper and somehow mend it back together to recreate its former image, they would know that the section of picture Kiku had stepped on was a fragment of Korea's smile.

* * *

America was finally released from the hospital. He had to go back to his country, since his boss was freaking out about the murders of two nations and the comatose state of another.

He had said good-bye to England, even though he knew that the elder country probably couldn't hear him. In addition, he had promised to visit as often as possible. Who would visit if America did not? France and Canada were dead. China still hated him for the Opium War. Japan was too shy. Germany didn't seem to have a past with England. Italy and Romano were terrified of him. Austria would get lost on his way to the hospital. What good would Spain be, besides talking aimlessly about how amazing the tomato harvest was that year and how Romano had actually agreed to help him for once? Would Russia even care?

America considered England's other colonies. India probably would visit, but India was difficult to contact. Hong Kong wouldn't, heck; he'd throw a party because "BrowBoy" had gone into a coma. Australia was too far away. Vietnam would probably just become depressed at the news, considering that she was already mourning France.

Only America would care enough.

He sighed. He arrived in the US of A soon enough, and let a taxi drive him home. His house wasn't far from D.C., just a few miles away.

Entering his house, he greeted Tony, walked to the TV room, and plopped onto a couch. He turned on the television. Bad news, bad news, more bad news, somewhat good news, bad news again. With another sigh, he turned the TV off.

Only a few hours since he had left England's bedside and America already missed the older nation. He was glad that England wasn't dead, of course but he wanted the old world back.

America hated living in constant paranoia. He wanted England to yell at him about using proper English. He wanted France to come back and flirt with everyone like he used to. He wanted Prussia to brag about his awesomeness. He wanted Italy to be useless, Germany to yell at everyone, Spain to be way too happy, Romano to call everyone a bastard, and Austria to play Beethoven or Chopin, or whatever other classical music on his piano!

He wanted Canada to come back and be Canada.

Sure, America had forgotten about his invisible little brother more than someone should, but the world was different without him and his polar bear. It was difficult to take care of double the land he used to, especially since France had died and England was in a coma. Just seeing the remains of Ottawa made his heart ache.

Wait. Heart… _ache_?

Now that he thought about it, America's heart felt a bit warmer than it usually did. Not exactly a comfortable warm, more like something was burning within him.

He looked out the window to check on D.C., but nothing appeared to be wrong. He sighed, deciding that it was just the economy.

Then he heard an explosion come from his capital. A few seconds later, the burning sensation became too painful to bear. He tried to hold it in, but he ended up screaming.

Frantic for release from the pain, he searched for his phone. Maybe id he called someone soon, D.C. would stop burning immediately.

America then spotted someone lurking in the shadows of his house. Taking out a gun, he shouted, "Show yourself!"

The figure seemed to tremble slightly. America fired a couple times, each shot missing. "Coward!" he accused. "You burn down my capital, but you don't dare show your face to me?!"

The person emerged from the shadows, saying in an electric tone: "I am no coward, America."

The person had a fully black mask on, covering his entire face. He wore black clothing as well, which had allowed him to hide in the dark.

America grit his teeth as the pain in his heart grew worse. "Who are you? Did you kill Canada and France? Did you knock England into the coma? Well, you won't be able to take America down, whoever you are!"

"I did nothing to Canada, France, or England," the black mask said quietly. "That was Fate."

"Fate?" America echoed, keeping his gun pointed at the killer.

"He's the one who planned all this," the person said. "I've recently decided to join his side."

"Why?! This is betrayal!"

"Now, America, the world has one rule: _Kill or be killed_. I simply chose to live through this, and keep my family alive as well," the killer said. "To answer your first question, you may call me Time."

"Time, you are so messed up," America declared.

"What makes you say that?" Time implored.

"Personally, I would rather die than betray my friends," America explained.

Time seemed to frown slightly, although his mouth was covered by his mask. "You have no idea what I was put through," he whispered murderously. "My family was next. If Fate hadn't showed any mercy by turning I into one of his own, then four of my family and I would be dead. That means five of your _friends_," he spat. "I had to sacrifice memories of my own to save them, and there's no going back. Your life is mine to take."

America fired again. Time brandished a sword and deflected the bullet.

"I'm not dying for you!" Alfred yelled. He pulled the trigger again and again, but the bullets either missed or were deflected. He hid under the table, only to have the wood be chopped in half by Time's blade. Somehow, the movements of the killer seemed familiar. Too familiar.

He tried to shoot once more, but he only heard a hollow clicking sound, filling his mind with dread. In a final attempt, he threw the empty gun at the masked figure. Time dodged it, but the end of the gun caught the ribbon on his mask, causing it to fall off.

Of all the people America thought would possibly join Fate's side, he never thought Japan would.

"Japan?" America breathed.

The Asian country narrowed his eyes. "I am not Japan."

"But how could it not be you?"

"I am Time," he hissed. "Taking over Kiku Honda's vessel. Kiku would not sacrifice this much. He is too weak. But Time is practically everything. He controls everything. He knows everything."

Time charged at Alfred, his katana reflecting the firelight glowing from D.C. Alfred jumped out of the way, landing in a heap with the remains of his table. He scooted away from Time, but the Asian just stepped closer, and eventually, Alfred's back met a wall.

Japan – no, Time knelt down in front of Alfred, so that their heads were at the same level. "Only Time will tell," he murmured. "Really, that saying couldn't be truer." Time raised the katana. "Any last words?"

"To Iggy," Alfred said quickly. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there when you woke up. I hope you do wake up, and when you do, everything will be back to normal. And to you, Kiku!" he shouted as Time began to move again. The killer froze at hearing his former name. "I know you are still in there, somewhere! I'm sorry I couldn't be _your_ hero. If I had thought about it… maybe I wouldn't have to die for you and your family. But know this – I died with honor! Serving the world until the end!"

Time was motionless for a moment. "How touching," he said finally, the words sounding forced. "Well, they all lived happily ever after." He stabbed Alfred once, straight into his heart, The light in Alfred's sky blue eyes flickered and died. "The end."

The killer stood up, wiping his blade on Alfred's jacket. "They all lived happily ever after," he said again, walking out of America's home. "But what happened to the villain? Doesn't he have to count in 'they all'?" Time scoffed. "What a lie, these fairy tales." He suddenly stopped and looked back for a moment, then went back into the house, a plan in mind.

* * *

Time was on his flight back to Japan when his cell phone rang. On normal circumstances, he would have turned off his phone, but this was hardly a normal circumstance.

It was an unknown number, probably Fate calling from a disposable device.

"Hai, this is Kiku," he said anyway.

"Kiku-chan! How did your journey go?"

Time frowned a bit. "Fate, you realize that 'Kiku' is a fake name now?"

"Oh really? What do you call yourself, then?"

"I am Time."

"I like it. Fate and Time. It has a ring in it. So? Tell me, how did it go with our good friend Alfred?"

Time smirked. "I was successful."

"Ooh, goody! That means I can continue!"

"Continue?"

"Continue the game, of course!" Fate giggled. "Head back home now. Your job is done, Time."

"Thank you, Fate."

"You are very welcome, Time," Fate said warmly. He hung up and turned to a person laying on a bed, clothed in a hospital gown.

"England's turn now," he thought aloud. "How shall we do this?"

England breathed slowly into an oxygen mask. His arm was attached to an IV, dripping steadily. A heart monitor beeped in the background.

"You know, I was thinking of turning you into someone like me," he said to the sleeping country. "You, I though, would be more entertaining. But then I remembered that the only person you had left was Alfred. Once Alfred was gone, you wouldn't be as fun. With Time, I have four more people to play with!"

Fate cackled to himself. "Yes, yes, now where was I…" He took out a package, covered with brightly colored gift wrapping. "I got a present for you, England," he nearly sang. "Once you open it, you'll be so happy, you'll _explode_!" Fate pressed a certain spot on the present and put it under England's bed.

He walked out of the hospital, calling for a taxi. Once fifteen minutes had passed since Fate had left the present in England's room, the section of the medical building blew up.

England never woke up from his coma.

* * *

"I realize that BrowBoy's like, my adoptive father or whatever, Mei," Leon said into his cell phone. The taxi driver paid no attention. "But he was like, totally useless. Why do I have to go see him?"

Leon listened to his sister talk about the importance of extended families and exhaled. He really did not want to see his "father", especially when he was lying in a hospital, half dead.

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," he said. "No, I won't blow up his room, Mei, seriously…" Leon looked out the window, the scene before him causing his eyes to widen. "Mei, I can't blow up his room. Firstly because that would be totally cruel. Secondly because he'd have no reaction, so that would be like, boring. And lastly because…" He looked out the window again to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. "…someone like, already did that for me."

He heard Mei begin to panic. "Mei, calm down, hold on. I'm like, going to call America. Call Teacher for me, yeah?" Leon hung up, hoping that Mei wouldn't continue to panic and actually inform China that he was in a bad situation. He found America's number and called it. It went straight to voicemail.

That was strange. America always kept his phone on. He called the number again, but groaned when all he heard was "You've reached the voicemail of Alfred F. Jones! I'm not around right now since I'm probably saving the world, so you can leave your message after the beep!"

Leon called Mei back. "Mei, I have a feeling that America's dead too."

"Wait, America too?!" Mei wailed.

"He like, didn't answer any of my calls. He always keeps his phone on!"

"Oh my god… Leon, what are we going to do?!"

"Let's inform Germany," Leon suggested. "He always seems to lead World Meetings, so assume he's like, in charge."

"Okay, that sounds good…" Mei said. "I'm sorry for losing it, Leon. I should be stronger than that."

"It's totally fine. Older sisters should trust their younger brothers to be strong sometimes. I'll call you back." He hung up again. Leon finally realized how lucky he was that he knew practically _every_ country's phone number. Scrolling through his contacts and finding Germany's number, he pressed the phone to his ear, anxiously tapping his foot.

"_Hallo_?"

"Mr. Germany, this is Hong Kong."

Germany seemed surprised that the region was calling him. "_J-ja, _what is it?"

"I'm trying to visit the hospital that BrowBoy – I mean, England is in," Hong Kong corrected himself. "The east side of the hospital was blown up!"

Germany abruptly stood up, his chair clattering to the floor. "_Gott_. Hong Kong, give me a moment, okay?"

"Mr. Germany, this better be quick," Hong Kong said. "I have additional news."

"All right." Germany grabbed his home phone and called Spain.

"_Hola_, this is Antonio!"

"Spain, is Gilbert there?"

"_Si_, he's been resting. Gil! It's your brother!"

Germany waited.

"Hey, West, what's up?"

"Gil, what side of the hospital was England's room on?"

"Hm? I don't remember… the left side, I think!"

"No, no, north, east, south, or west?"

Germany paced back and forth as Prussia struggled to remember his cardinal directions. "Uh… I think it was the east side!"

Germany paled. "That was it, thanks, _bruder_."

"No problem, West!"

He hung up on Prussia and turned back to his cell phone. "Hong Kong, are you still there?"

"Yes, I am. Get anything?"

"Chances are, the room that was bombed was England's room, if not one close to it."

"Does that mean that…?" Hong Kong drew off.

"_Ja_."

"Oh, all right… And I wanted to tell you that I called America earlier, and he didn't pick up."

"Don't tell me…"

"I have a suspicion that he got killed."

Germany swallowed uncomfortably. "We'll investigate further."

"I'll leave you to it. I'm planning on helping the English government support its country."

"Could you do that?" Germany asked.

"Yes, I can," Hong Kong assured the country. "Regions are less powerful than nations, but with help from people, I'm sure that I can do this. Teacher can manage my land for now, I don't think my people will be very happy that China is helping out, but they are aware that London was destroyed. We owe a lot to England, as much as I hate to admit it."

"I'll take your word for it," Germany said. "It's the best we can do, I guess. I can't think of any other solution. Do your best, and if you ever require assistance, other countries are around."

"I'll remember that. Thank you very much, Mr. Germany," Hong Kong replied, hanging up. He sent Mei a quick text message, giving the major points of Germany and his discussion.

"Mr. Driver, could you take me to the Capital?" he requested. The taxi driver nodded and began a different route. Hong Kong straightened his outfit. It was rather casual for a meeting with government officials, but his original purpose wasn't to meet with them.

That Saturday, everyone was on Skype for their World Meeting, except for France, Canada, America, and England. All of the countries knew why. An investigation team had found America in his home, stabbed.

Germany began the meeting. "There is an additional person attending this meeting, but he informed me that he would be late. First off, I'd like to hear from the leader of the investigation team to America's house.

"_Hao_!" China said. "As you all probably know, aru, America was stabbed. But we found a strange note that came with it, aru." He showed a picture of one of the walls in America's house. It was smeared with blood, forming letters.

"Only Time will tell Fate's decision," Italy read aloud. Strangely enough, Italy had volunteered to be part of the investigation team.

"So? What did you get out of that message?" a new voice asked. A new screen appeared, revealing Hong Kong.

"Leon, aru?! What are you doing here, aru?!" China spluttered.

"China, please calm down," Germany said. "Everyone, Hong Kong here will be representing the United Kingdom of Britain and Northern Ireland."

"I thought that Mei would have told you, Teacher," Hong Kong remarked. "She's taking charge of my region until the English government is strong enough to survive without a personification."

"A question," Romano interrupted. "What happens to a country if there is no personification supporting it?"

"My theory is that it becomes wasteland," Hong Kong replied. "Without a personification, the people living in those countries die out, bit by bit. I was in London when England was killed, so I decided to help out."

"So who's taking care of France, Canada, and America?" Japan asked.

"I'm taking care of France," Prussia said. "West and I got Cuba to take care of both Canada and America. He finally got over that grudge."

"That's good to know," Russia said. "Now, shall we refocus on that message that the killer left for us?"

"Killer? You must mean _killers_," Italy said. "There's at least two of them."

"How do you know that?" Denmark asked. He was present on behalf of Scandinavia, trying to make sure that his brothers didn't get hurt, or worse, killed.

"Well, think about it," Italy began. "America's and England's killings happened minutes after each other. There's no way a killer could fly across the Atlantic in a matter of minutes. There has to be two."

"That makes sense… but what about the message?" Germany found it hard to believe that Italy, of all people, was solving this.

"It seems that they've named themselves. Fate and Time," Italy continued. "The message capitalizes Fate and Time, so those must be nicknames. Fate is the leader, and Time does his bidding."

"So two killers…" Hong Kong muttered.

Uncomfortable silence. Japan shifted in his seat.

"I don't want to suspect anyone," Spain said suddenly. "It's too painful to think that any of us would kill their fellow countries."

"None of us want to suspect anyone," Germany said. "We've fought wars against each other many times. But in times like these, we're all allies."

The countries murmured in agreement.

"Fate and Time, if you are attending this meeting…" Hong Kong spoke up. "Know that you've killed my Western family. BrowBoy, although he was a jerk a lot and totally couldn't cook to save his life, he took care of me. I miss having him around. America, while I was living in BrowBoy's house, used to visit. His hamburgers were disgusting, but I miss him too. France and BrowBoy fought a lot, and I remember listening on a phone conversation. So loud, but that's what made the world fun. You took them both. And Canada… did you know, Fate and Time – we had the same birthday? We had a lot in common, now that I think about it, but we barely knew each other. He was invisible to me. I was just a region. You stole a potential friend.

"Also, know that one day, you will regret your choice to kill so many. Everyone does. And when you are caught, I'll take revenge for my family." Hong Kong hung up.

Germany ended the meeting. Everyone left except Japan, who stared at his screen, pale with shock.

* * *

**I AM FINISHED WITH THE CHAPTER. Yes! Again, thanks to Lucky-Angel135 for the original ideas for this chapter.**

**SHOUT OUTS: Purestrongpoem, RinzlerKItty94, Scotland Allistor Kirkland, EmiCyanSayMii, KimimiCchi, RandomPerson164, Insane Anime Fan 101, sorcha, and Canadatheninja!**

**And thanks to all of you who are following and favorited **_**And They All Die in the End**_**! I'm glad to have that much support, it really is helping.**

**Please review? Reviews make me motivated to post more! **


	6. The Wild One

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Six: The Wild One**

The Nordics sat on the sofa together in Denmark's house. They were watching a somewhat well known movie, a pretty romantic one at that. It was the traditional Romeo and Juliet storyline, where a boy and a girl love each other, but the world just didn't ship them together.

Except this was a story about two guys who loved each other.

Finland was crying into Sweden's shoulder, Sweden was staring at the television, looking intimidating as always, Iceland looked ready to go to sleep, and Denmark and Norway were playing Mario Kart on the DS.

"Moral of the story," Iceland announced when the credits began, and the two main characters had drowned in the nearby river together. "Never let Finland chose the movie."

"That was so beautiful!" Finland wailed, deaf to Iceland's rude remarks. "Wasn't it, Sve?"

"Hn," Sweden grunted. It was probably an affirmative, but who knows.

"Damn it, Norge! You're way too good at this," Denmark yelled.

"They died in each other's arms!" Finland cried, still sobbing into Sweden's shirt.

Iceland groaned.

"Rematch!" Denmark challenged.

"I won fair and square, but I'll win again if you really want to," Norway said.

"How useless can these people get…?" Iceland muttered. "Might as well call Leon…" He pulled out his phone and pressed one of the contacts.

"Hello?" an unfamiliar voice said.

"Uh, is Leon Wang around?" Iceland asked.

"Yes, what business do you have with him?"

Well, this was weird. Normally Leon wouldn't be busy… "I'm his friend."

"I see. Could I have your name?"

"Emil Steilsson."

"Just a moment, please." Iceland sighed. Since when was Leon so important that someone had to manage his calls for him?

"Emil, long time no talk," Leon said.

"Hey," Emil greeted him. "What's going on? You have a manager now?"

"Huh? Didn't Denmark tell you? He was at the World Meeting last Saturday."

"Since when are you allowed in World Meetings?" Emil was puffing himself up unconsciously. He used to tease Leon about not being able to go to the World Meetings, but that was dissolved…

"So he didn't tell you."

"Of course not."

"Emil, are you aware that BrowBoy died?" Leon asked.

Emil blinked. "Well, yes, I thought that everyone knew."

"Yeah. So I'm basically 'England' now. I'm managing the country as a personification."

Emil froze. Leon's voice became merely background music about how complicated the switchover was and how there was so much paperwork and stupid high security measures.

"I mean, like, how can you even manage that much work? Imagine those people who had colonies, that's even more work, and Sealand's annoying as hell as it is, think about it – hey, Emil, still there?"

"Yeah," he said quickly. "It's just hard to believe."

"I suppose so… Anyway, what's going on with you?"

"Nothing exciting, Finland made all of us watch one of those gay flicks. Boring."

"Yeah, well, that's what brothers do. Teacher made us watch a boring documentary about how we should respect the old traditions and keep practicing them. The narrator was so irritating."

"Ouch."

"But I hear that gay flicks aren't usually that good. From what Yong Soo told me a long time ago, they're usually tragic? I'm curious; did they get together in the end?"

"Nope, they committed suicide," Emil said casually.

"I bet Finland's still crying, yeah?"

"Into Sweden's shirt."

"Eh, well… that's Finland, I suppose." Emil could practically hear Leon's shrug. "I have to head back to work now, sorry."

"Oh, um, that's okay."

"If you say so… Er, I think it would be better if you didn't call again. It's hard enough for my manager to take care of all those calls and…"

Emil swallowed hard. "I get it. Sorry."

"Oh, no, you didn't know! I'll live. Listen, I'll find some way to communicate. If I have to resort to something really stupid, I will. We need allies, especially in times like this, yeah?"

"You're right."

"Of course. Talk to you later." Leon hung up.

Emil pressed the End Call button and went back to the TV room. Angry, Danish swearing filled his ears immediately.

"What happened?" He asked Sweden.

"Lost the rematch," Sweden mumbled.

"He deserves it," Emil said. "Matthias, why didn't you tell us about the meeting last Saturday?"

Denmark looked up from his DS, pausing in the middle of swearing. "Well, I thought it wasn't that important. You guys already heard about America and England, after all…"

"You didn't tell us that. Hong Kong is the personification of England," Emil pointed out.

"Wait, what happened with Leon?!" Norway asked.

"He's the personification of England," Matthias repeated. "Apparently he was in London when England's room was bombed, so he took immediate action and took care of the country. Taiwan's taking care of Hong Kong Region right now."

"I would have expected that Leon would have trusted Yao more…" Finland piped up, rubbing away remaining tears.

"Remember, China is communist," Norway reminded Tino. "Hong Kong is a republic, I believe. It's easier for these people to transition. "

"Oh, so it's for the people's sake." Tino clarified. Lukas nodded.

"That's the job of personifications-sacrifice everything for the people." Matthias said.

"But wait. If he was in London when the hospital was bombed, he could have been the killer." Berwald said.

"I don't want to think that Leon's a killer, but Sve's right" Tino added.

"But you can't possibly think that…" Emil tried to say.

"Leon's your 'friend', Emil. Don't be blinded by that." Lukas advised.

"I agree with Ice," Matthias said, tapping his chin. "Leon seemed genuinely sad about the deaths. He can't be Fate or Time."

"Fate, Time? What do they have to do with this?" Tino asked.

"The killers – Italy reasoned that there were two of them – nicknamed themselves. Fate is the original killer, and Time is his follower," Matthias explained.

"I still think that Leon could be a killer," Lukas said. "The explosions could have been something like fireworks. He knows a lot about explosives. Maybe too much."

"And all of us can act at least relatively well," Tino added. "Leon's probably exceptional at it, considering that he's emotionless-looking most of the time."

Berwald nodded.

"But to come up with something that genuine looking on the spot…" Matthias began.

"Shut up, Denmark," Lukas snapped, firmly but quietly. "There's no way to work around the facts that are gathered. I'm keeping him in suspicion." He turned toward Emil. "I'm afraid for you, as an older brother. I realize that you and Leon are friends, and have been for a long time now, but he's potentially dangerous. I wouldn't trust him so easily."

Emil glared at his brother. "You people may have reason to suspect him, but I have reason to trust him. Lukas, I know you're worried about me, but if I die and the killer turns out to be Leon, then you can go ahead and say 'I told you so.' I just have a feeling that you're wrong." He stomped away, going into his guest room and locking himself in.

The other Nordics stared after him. Lukas sighed. "At this rate, we'll all be killed."

"Don't say that, Lukas. Too pessimistic," Berwald said.

"I realize it's pessimistic, Sve, it's just… it's probably how he's going to end up," Lukas said pathetically, putting his head in his hands. "Why can't I be a better older brother…"

Matthias patted his back. "It's hard, man, we all know."

"We don't know what Fate and Time are planning next. Let's just cross our fingers and hope for the best," Tino said.

Lukas nodded. "I'll head to sleep now. I need to clear my mind. I'm taking my usual guest room, Denmark." He stood up and left.

Tino shook his head. "We can't afford to argue now, in times like this. We need to be strong together."

"Tino, you and Berwald are sharing a room like always, right?" Matthias asked wearily.

"Yes, of course."

"All right then, you know where to go," Matthias said, vaguely gesturing in the direction of their guest room. "You two better sleep. It's late."

"Make sure you sleep too, Matthias," Berwald reminded him. He took Tino's hand and they walked away together.

Matthias watched them leave, a sad expression on his face as he saw their entwined hands. "Love…" he murmured. "I wish that all relationships had such unconditional love as they do."

* * *

Japan stared blankly out the window. He was still in his room, in his evening yukata, hair messy. He still felt Hong Kong's expressionless stare on him – eyes full of hatred and vengeance, and yet had had a tinge of mourning – as if the stare was given directly to him.

Despite being "Time", Japan still had a human heart – or at least, a bit of one. That stare had drawn out all the guilt in him, making him feel sick to the stomach. He had no idea why Fate could deal with it so easily.

There was only one conclusion Japan could come up with: Fate was purely insane.

From his bedroom window, he could see the afternoon sun beating down on the outside world. The sun seemed to glare at the country as well, stabbing his heart with shame and letting guilt pour out in torrents.

No, no, no! Why was he regretting this?! He had saved his family's lives!

He pulled a blanket over his head and huddled up on his futon. He should have known that Fate would target him after England; after all, France had been successful. Pochi crawled under the covered and licked Japan's cheek, perhaps trying to comfort his master. Japan didn't seem to feel it, so Pochi whimpered softly, and then just lay next to the trembling nation.

His cell phone rang. Somehow, he knew it would be Fate. "Moshimoshi?"

"Time," Fate said. "We talk again."

The calling of his alias drew out the killer in him. "Yes," he said smoothly. "It has been a while."

"I must compliment you on that message you sent to everyone. It was fun to see their faces! I nearly laughed when it was _Italy_ who pointed out that there were two of us! _Italy_! Of all people!"

Japan – Time blinked. "I expected that you would be disappointed."

"Quite the contrary! This makes the game more interesting, don't you agree?"

"Yes, of course," he said promptly. "Shall I continue to leave clues, then?"

"Hm… do your best, Time. I don't mind either way."

"Will do, Fate. And also… who's our next target?"

"Hm? Ahaha, so you _want_ to kill now?"

Japan hesitated. "Killing is seen as immoral," he said carefully. "But that feeling after one has killed someone… that feeling of power… I would like to feel it again."

"I had expected that my little chrysanthemum would only lose one petal to the lust for power," Fate laughed. "_Kiku-chan_, killing is a drug. At first, you barely make it out. But you just _need_ to try it again. The second time feels easier. It gets easier until you can kill without thinking. And your mind becomes infected with the lust for power."

"Fate, I am not Kiku."

"Yes, you are. Within you, there is a bit of innocence. That is Kiku. You are covering Kiku with a new identity, which is Time."

"…I understand."

"I don't want 'Kiku' to disappear."

"What?"

"I don't want the innocence you hold somewhere inside you to die," Fate repeated. "Yes, 'Time' is all good. For my plan to kill off unneeded countries, that is. But 'Kiku' is what entertains me."

Kiku took over. "You sick bastard!"

"Ooh. Look who it is!"

"I'm not alive for your entertainment!" Kiku shouted. Anger kept Time in check.

"I hate to break this to you, _Kiku-chan_, but in a way, you are," Fate said, his voice filled with amusement. "Remember that one time? I was going to kill you if you didn't entertain me." An electronic chuckle came from the phone. "Both you and Time are my puppets."

"You… you're insane," Kiku spat.

"Oh, I know, _Kiku-chan_, I am fully aware of my lack of sanity!" Fate cackled. "I'm so glad that my puppets are so interesting!"

"You will be found, one day," Kiku vowed. "And when you are found, we'll make sure you regret everything you did."

"Yes, that is very likely," Fate said sarcastically. "If I get caught, you will be dead by then. 'Time' has enough control to make sure 'Kiku' doesn't exist when Fate is caught."

"Just you wait. I'll find you."

"Then I'll be waiting. Time, I'll let you have a break. There will be no target… for now."

Fate hung up. Kiku had an urge to destroy this phone too, but what good would that do?

Something within him cackled. _What will you do? You are nothing compared to Fate._

_ Shut up,_ Kiku thought.

_You and I both know that Fate will win, _Time laughed. _Kill or be killed, like always. Your people need you._

"_Shut up!_" Kiku screamed into the empty house. Pochi looked at him in concern.

"Oh… I'm sorry, Pochi-kun," he said softly, petting his dog gently. Kiku stood up, deciding that the day had to begin.

He sat down at his table and ate a rice ball. It was simple and delicious. It reminded him of the times before all this chaos.

"Ahh… well, peaceful times don't last forever, now do they?"

Kiku looked up. Someone was sitting across from him. The person looked exactly like Kiku, but his face was somehow darker, his uniform was a jet black color, and his eyes were blood red. A satisfied smirk covered his face. Strapped onto the side of his head was a black mask, hanging like one from a festival.

"Of course they don't," Time said, answering his own question. "Nothing lasts forever. Nothing is infinite. Not even time." He laughed bitterly. "That means one day, I will fall. But before that, you will."

Time leaped across the table and grabbed Kiku's neck, squeezing hard. Kiku gasped, struggling against the strangling hold.

Pochi yipped in alarm and ran outside. Looking around, he saw someone… someone familiar. He ran as quickly as his little legs would allow him, barking as loud as he could, doing all that he could to try and get the man's attention.

"Pochi, aru? What's wrong, aru?" the man asked.

Pochi ran back into his master's house, trying to signal the man to hurry. The man seemed to get the message for he followed the dog inside.

"Kiku, aru, your dog's telling me that something's wrong, aru…" China sighed. He walked into the dining room. "Kiku… Aiyah, aru!"

Kiku was sitting in front of a half-eaten rice ball, trying to strangle himself. Pochi yipped at his master, as if begging him to stop.

China hurried to his little brother, attempting to unclasp Kiku's fingers from his own neck. "Kiku, stop, aru!"  
Kiku seemed to not hear, and his fingers squeezed harder. Yao began to panic. No, wait, he was already panicking, but he panicked more.

"Kiku, aru, snap out of it, aru!" Yao shouted, finally pulling one of his hands off his neck. "Kiku fell back in his chair, not breathing.

Yao was relieved that Kiku had stopped strangling himself, but he had to get medical help. He grabbed Kiku's phone and called the nations' hospital.

"Yao Wang, China," he announced. "I'm at Japan's house. He was choked. I need some help here, as soon as possible, aru." He hung up.

Next, he called Russia. "Privyet, this is-!"

"Ivan, Kiku choked himself," Yao interrupted. "I called the hospital, and his pulse is still there, but I'm worried."

"Hm… that doesn't seem like a very Kiku-ish thing to do," Ivan said.

"I know that! I'm worried about whether he'll try that again, aru!"

"I'm sure you are, Yao. Maybe you can take turns with Korea Taiwan and Hong Kong to watch him for a while."

"But what if I'm taking care of Kiku, aru, and you're alone, aru? You could be killed!"

"Shifts don't have to be that long. A day and night, maybe. I'll be fine, I have my magic stick, remember?"

"Of course, aru…" Yao said exasperatedly. "I'll take your advice, then."

"Good! Make sure that Kiku is safe. I'm fine. I'll head to Tokyo now."

Yao hung up. He heard the sirens wailing outside, and the medics came in, carried Kiku onto a stretcher and took the stretcher to the ambulance. He went to follow them, but the medics stopped him before he could get onto the vehicle.

"Sir, only relatives are allowed to ride in the ambulance," one said.

"Kiku Honda is the personification of Japan; he doesn't have blood relatives, aru!" Yao screamed. "I am Yao Wang, aru, personification of the People's Republic of China, aru! Kiku and I are as close to real brothers that personifications can get, aru! Now let me on, aru!"

"I'll need identification, then-!"

"Kiku could be dying, aru! We don't have time for this, aru! You do realize that this is a matter of life and death for you too, aru?" Yao demanded. "If Kiku dies, aru, your country will become a wasteland aru, and all of Japan will die, aru, all because you wasted time with identification, aru!" He stomped onto the ambulance, not waiting for the medic to respond.

The ambulance sped away. Yao proceeded to call Mei.

"Teacher? What's going on? Don't tell me that someone got killed!" Mei said.

"Mei, it's not Fate this time, it's Kiku," Yao replied.

"Kiku? What happened?"

"He tried to choke himself to death, Mei," Yao said. He heard the beginnings of a sob. "Mei, I need you to help me."

"A-all right, what is it?"

"I need to make sure that Kiku doesn't try to kill himself again," Yao explained. "Please, just help me watch over him."

"I-I can do that. And I'll tell Yong Soo, if that helps any," Mei confirmed.

"Yes, that helps a lot, aru. I need to go, meet you in Tokyo."

He hung up and sighed, glancing at Kiku. He was breathing, thankfully, but he was still unconscious. "Kiku… what's wrong with you these days, aru?"

* * *

"Will he be okay?" Korea asked. "I won't forgive whoever did this, da-ze!"

"Yong Soo, be quiet. You are much too loud," Hong Kong hissed. "He will be fine. Teacher informed me that Kiku has awoken. Don't worry."

Yong Soo pursed his lips. "Since when did you stop using 'modern teen' language? It sounds weird, da-ze."

"Recently, actually," Leon replied, checking his cell phone. "I just thought that now that I'm representing a country, it would be better to use a more formal diction."

_Oh, right, he's England now…_ Yong Soo looked at his brother. Leon seemed to be so much more uptight. He had bags under his eyes from lack of sleep, and he was constantly checking the time. It made Yong Soo sad to see his youngest brother so stressed.

"Hey, Leon, we should hang out sometime," he said. "We could watch a drama and drink soda and do whatever. It'd be like the old times, you know?"

Leon stared at Yong Soo expressionlessly. "I don't know when I'll be free…" he murmured. "The Prime Minister's really trying to fix up London as quickly as possible, so there's much more paperwork to take care of. It's only because Japan's sort of like family to me that I'm here. If it were really any other country, I would still be at work."

Yong Soo sighed. "You need to relax at some point, da-ze!"

"A time will come for rest later, Yong Soo. Be patient."

The door to Japan's hospital room swung open. Yao stepped out.

"How is he?" Yong Soo asked.

"He's awake, but he won't speak," Yao said. "He'll nod and shake his head, but that's about it, aru."

"Can I see him?"

"Sure, aru. I need to head back to Ivan's place, aru." Yao nodded once to Leon, then left.

Yong Soo rushed into Kiku's room, Leon behind him. Kiku was sitting up on his bed, propped up by some pillows. Mei was trying to talk to him, but Kiku would only faintly nod every few sentences. His neck was bruised by the force of his fingers.

"Kiku, da-ze!" Yong Soo cried. Kiku looked at him in surprise, the emotion barely registering on his face. "Oh my god, when Mei told me that you choked yourself, I was so worried, da-ze!"

"Choked… myself?" Kiku whispered.

"Yeah, that's what Mei said," Yong Soo clarified.

"Teacher told me the same thing," Leon added.

The shock was obvious on Kiku's face. "But I didn't… he was… I wouldn't…"

"What ? You didn't… what?" Yong Soo asked. "Who's 'he'?"

Kiku fell silent again. Leon frowned, and then checked his phone again.

"I have to leave," he said. "Mei, you're staying here with Kiku, right?" Mei nodded. "All right. Get well soon, Kiku." Leon left the room, the door swinging shut behind him.

Yong Soo watched him leave, then focused back on Kiku. After a few minutes had passed in complete silence, he said, "You'll never tell us anything, will you?"

Kiku didn't answer.

"Kiku, one day you have to realize that we're your family, and we're here for you, da-ze. Before, you've helped me with my problems. You have to realize that all of us, even Leon, are grown up. We'll listen to you."

There was still no response.

Yong Soo gave up. "I'm out of here. Be careful, da-ze!" He left, leaving Mei and Kiku alone.

Mei sighed and put her head in her hands. "Why does this world have to be so… so cruel?"

Kiku looked at her, expressionless.

"Each country has their dark side, we all know it," she said, more to herself than to Kiku. "The dark side always comes out during war. None of us have any control over that darkness. Not yet."

Kiku, as dazed and lifeless as he seemed, listened closely.

"The darkness comes in when it wants, then slaughters everything in its path, then retreats to let the light deal with the death, destruction, and guilt," Mei continued. "I have a feeling that you're fighting your own darkness, Kiku. We believe in you. You will win."

She sat next to Kiku's bed, on an uncomfortable hospital chair, telling stories of what happened without Kiku around. She spoke of her sadness when Leon left to take care of England, her happiness to see him back, and her surprise at how much he had changed. "Actually, all of us are shocked, I'm sure," she thought aloud. "When he was a kid, Leon was adorable, so loyal, so obedient. A parent's dream, I would expect. And then he came back from England's place the first time, he had become rebellious and somewhat mischievous. He constantly insulted Teacher and Yong Soo, and held extremely loud parties." Mei sighed. "And now he's changed again, now that he's 'England'. He's so tired-looking, responsible, respectful. Distant. Even more distant than you, Kiku."

He listened.

"It's scary. Now that Fate and Time are killing off people like us, all of my family's been affected. Teacher's grown more attached to that guy, Ivan. Yong seems clingier to you and Leon. Leon's getting farther away from us. And you're here now, and people are suspicious that you tried to kill yourself. It's an understandable theory, now that I think about it, but I don't want to think that you would do things like suicide, unless it were ritual," Mei listed off. "I really hate all of this change, and I'm sure that all of you do too. This killer is tearing us apart. We're a family. In times of crisis, we must work together.

Kiku nodded.

Mei looked at her brother, then relaxed in her chair. "In any case, we're lucky. No one in our family has been attacked… I wonder how Prussia manages to keep going," she remarked. "In his own way, he truly is awesome."

Kiku nodded again. They sat in silence for a while, then Mei said, "You should rest now." She adjusted the pillows so that Kiku was lying down.

"You should rest too," Kiku said quietly.

Mei blinked, then smiled. "Don't worry, _onii-sama_. I will. But you're more important right now."

"Mei, don't prioritize me," Kiku said, a plea in his voice.

She merely smiled and said, "You're the injured one."

"Be that as it may, I don't want you to be sleep deprived."

"Don't worry, I will rest. You first," Mei insisted.

Kiku sighed, then closed his eyes. Once Mei deemed him peacefully asleep, she drifted off in her chair.

* * *

Someplace, somewhere, Fate chuckled to himself. He had found that he was doing that more often. But, to be as honest as a killer could possibly be, life was just so amusing these days.

He had found a new toy to play with, and it had come "buy one get one free". Tampering with Kiku had brought forth Time, which created a new aspect of the game.

England had died, which was a bit of a disappointment, but Hong Kong took his place. Fate didn't see that coming. Hong Kong tended to go with the flow, but becoming "England" had changed the game. Fate had figured that if Beijing was destroyed and China was killed, then Hong Kong would die as well.

Fate frowned at the idea of killing an extra person – it was such a hassle – but oh well. That meant destroying London again. His face twisted into a grin. How would London go down this time?

He sat back in his chair, humming to himself. _I wonder who should go down next… _he thought. _This game is fun; I don't want the interesting ones to quit._

_ Yet._

* * *

The funerals of France, America, and England were held in the same place as Canada's. Only the ex-colonies of the three of them attended.

Together, the nations decided to bury all deceased countries in the same place. Many hated the thought of a mass grave, but it really was beautiful in Canada. And they felt as though it were some sort of tribute to the invisible country. Remembering him in death.

Seychelles wiped her eyes, standing next to Vietnam in front of France's grave. India, Hong Kong, and Australia stood in front of both England's and America's tombstones.

India sniffed. "England was a good person, even though he colonized a lot – all of us," he said.

Seychelles nodded. "France and England were the best brothers I could have." Vietnam smiled at Seychelles, expressing silent agreement.

"America was great. I didn't know him too well, but he was the first to revolt. He had the first major revolution, I think," Australia said. "He inspired a lot of us."

Hong Kong didn't say anything, didn't shed a tear. He just stood there, emotionlessly staring at the headstones. It was hard to tell whether he cared or not.

Eventually, all of them left, beginning with India, who had work to do and didn't want to deal with traffic in New Delhi, and ending with Australia, who found it extremely hard to just leave. Once the others had left, he knelt in front of France's grave.

"France… Francis Bonnefoy," he said out loud. "England told me not to go near you, saying that you were dangerous. I wish I had met you. I don't think that you were that dangerous. I believe that there was a chance that we might have become good friends."

Jett stood up, then knelt in front of America's grave. "America… Alfred F. Jones. You were an overconfident, annoying little brat, England said. But I think that you're a hero. I heard about what you did in London, saving England. That was truly heroic of you." Jett looked closer at Alfred's tombstone. _A hero to the end. To infinity and beyond!_

He finally reached England's grave. "I'll miss you, England… Arthur Kirkland. You told me a lot of things about the other countries, and I wonder whether they were all true. In the past, you sent a lot of criminals to my place. But I think that despite all of the bad things, you were an amazing big brother. I didn't think that I would be this sad when you had to go, but knowing that you won't ever come back…" He took a deep breath. "I don't want to say goodbye."

Jett stood farther away, so that he could see all of the graves, including Canada's. "Farewell, then."

"Yes, farewell," an electronic voice cackled from behind him. "Farewell, indeed! Don't worry, you'll see them all again, very very soon!"

With one thrust of Fate's arm, a knife went through Jett's chest. He opened his mouth in a silent scream, then fell to the ground, staining the grass with red. Fate watched the agonized country writhe in excruciating pain, then eventually go limp.

"Oh dear," he said. "You just had to be the lucky one, eh, Jett? I had expected that perhaps India – Raj was his name, wasn't it? I had originally thought that Raj would be the last one to leave, but it turns out that he had business. Hm. Well, since you're practically dead now, I've killed off two entire continents. With Time's help, yes, but nonetheless, two continents!"

Jett could only listen, barely registering what Fate was saying. He watched the killer pull out a cell phone and press I to his ear.

"Time? How convenient, she's asleep? Wonderful! One small favor? Take care of Canberra for me."

Jett closed his eyes, feeling his pain ebb away. He greeted Death like an old friend, and welcomed his cold embrace.

* * *

Hello, sorry this was so late! I'm currently on vacation, and the place I'm staying at doesn't have wi-fi. I'll try to update again once vacation is over, in two weeks, I believe.

SHOUTOUTS: Purestrongpoem, ChibiNekoCharmBraclet, Canadatheninja, tapion580, EmiCyanSayMii, Guest (What?! Why aren't you reading this anymore?! Sad...), TheGrammarHawk, and littlemissrussia (Where did you say I should post this on? You didn't exactly specify...)!

Reviews are motivation!


	7. The Lonely One

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Seven: The Lonely One**

Japan was released from the hospital not long after he was admitted. Korea made sure to escort him home.

"I really wonder whether living on your own is such a good idea, da-ze," he said to his older brother. "I've been over at Mei's place, just for precautions, you know? And I heard that Vietnam was staying at Thailand's house, along with India. Maybe you should move in with Russia and China, da-ze. I don't really trust Russia sometimes, but I'm sure they'd be happy to have you around… Japan, are you listening to me, da-ze?!"

Japan nodded slightly. He still wasn't communicating very much.

Korea sighed. "We just want to make sure that everyone will be okay."

They arrived at Japan's house, going inside. Korea had Japan sit in the living room while he made some tea.

"Don't kill yourself while you're there, da-ze," he said jokingly, laughing nervously. Japan turned to look at Korea, making him panic a bit. "I mean it, da-ze!"

The tea was made and poured for the both of them quickly, but it tasted exceptional all the same, considering that Japan had amazing quality tea and all of the Asian countries, including Korea, had learned to make near-perfect tea in their childhood. Korea had found that particular lesson useless back then, but in this circumstance, he was glad that China had enforced that study.

"How are you feeling?" Korea asked hesitantly, sipping his tea.

"Better, now," Japan replied shortly. There were still bandages on his neck from when he had "choked himself", so that the bruises were covered.

"That's good," Korea said. "Um… do you think that you'll be able to make it to this Saturday's meeting?"

Japan nodded.

"Don't work yourself too hard, da-ze. You just got out of the hospital."

No response.

Korea glanced at his watch, not really thinking about what time it was. "China wanted to make you take a mental exam, did you know? He wanted to know whether you were insane or not, and if you were, then he would have stuck you in the loony house, da-ze."

Japan looked at Korea, taking a sip of his tea.

"Taiwan and I argued against it, da-ze. Hong Kong wasn't there. We won, in the end, but China is hard to win against, you know," Korea continued. "I think that we're all slowly losing our sanity, with the things that are happening. One by one, our fellow countries are being murdered. The killings are scratching away the 'nice side' to us, da-ze. One of us has already lost their 'nice side' due to the assassinations. That's Time."

Japan watched Korea drink his tea, surprised at his younger brother's words.

"I just hope that it stops, da-ze," Korea said. "I don't want my 'nice side' to disappear. I don't want to be reduced to just instinct, only caring for survival. I want to be both 'South Korea' and 'Im Yong Soo'." He stopped and set down his empty teacup. "I also hope that you keep your 'nice side', Kiku. I hope you don't lose it."

Korea then smiled and stood up. "Anyway, I have to head home now. Take good care of yourself." He waved and left, humming something catchy.

Japan looked down at his tea, his murky reflection staring back at him. "Oh, Yong Soo," Time whispered. "I've already lost my 'nice side'."

* * *

"Australia's dead?!" Germany yelled into the phone.

"Yes, he's dead, I'm sure you're not deaf, man!" Cuba shouted back. "But if you keep screaming like that, then _I'll_ become deaf!"

Germany took a deep breath. Why did all of the nations have to report to _him_ about who died? Since when was he a leader? "All right, where did you find him?"

"In the graveyard of nations, in front of England's grave," Cuba replied. "I had come to pay my respects to Canada, but then he was dead. Australia was all pale, as if all of his blood had been sucked out of him, but there was an obvious stab mark."

"I see, thank you."

"No problem at all."

Germany hung up. The killer seemed to be attacking everyone close to England, he figured. So then, who was next? Hong Kong? India? England had past connections with practically the entire world.

_That was one of the reasons why the killer targeted England's 'family' first, _Germany theorized. _Someone close to Canada, with a grudge against England?_

_ Prussia?_

Germany didn't want to suspect his brother, but all the clues seemed to point directly at him. He tried to convince himself time and again that Prussia was just in the wrong places at the wrong times, but incidents like that had happened too much to just be coincidental.

_Should I talk to him about it?_ Germany thought. _Maybe I'll find something out._

Prussia was aimlessly fiddling with objects he had found in his guest room. The killing of nations had been tragic, of course, but he had learned many a thing from it.

For example, apparently it was possible for nations to enter a comatose state. Prussia hadn't thought it possible before, but with England's situation, his thoughts had been proved otherwise. There had been some hope for England, but then Fate had decided that England had to be disposed of.

Next, he learned that personifications could switch which country (or in Hong Kong's case, region) they personified. It was a long process, but it was manageable. Prussia didn't think there was a point in having a new England, since Fate would probably take him down eventually, but Hong Kong was trying his best to keep the world alive. Prussia appreciated that, of course.

There was a knock on the door. "Gil, your brother's on the phone," Spain called.

He opened the door and took the phone from Spain. "What's up, West?" he asked.

"Gilbert, I have to ask you some serious questions," Germany said, his voice grave. "Are you in a private place?"

Prussia closed the door to the room. "Yeah, I am now."

"Good. Let me be straightforward with this – are you a killer?"

Gilbert blinked in surprise. "Of course not, West. Why would you think that?"

"It's just that you're always in the wrong place at the wrong time," Ludwig explained. "The number of times it has happened makes you look suspicious."

"Huh," Gilbert said. "Seriously though, West. I'm not Fate or Time. I couldn't kill Canada, no matter how much I would want to. I know – I knew him too well. He was a gentle, kind, quiet person. Knowing that, I couldn't kill him."

"I don't mean to argue against you, but others would," Germany said slowly. "You had just broken up, though. You might have been angry at him, and so you killed him."

"I'm the one who wanted to break up, though."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really," Gilbert admitted. "I liked him, a lot. But I didn't think it would work out. So I broke up with him, so that we could endure pain sooner rather than later. If anyone should have been angry, he should have been. I thought it was for the best, and in the end, he…"

Ludwig didn't say anything.

"Ludwig, I'm being serious. Please believe me," Gilbert pleaded. "It isn't me, I promise you."

"I'm sorry, Gilbert, but everything seems to point toward you," Ludwig sighed, still sounding doubtful. "I have to go now, talk to you later."

"Okay, talk to…" Gilbert didn't get to finish his sentence. All he heard was the dial tone.

* * *

"What are you doing here?!" demanded Turkey.

Greece looked at the masked country. "I could ask you the same thing. Personally, I'm here to visit Japan."

"Wha – You're still friends with him?!" Turkey exclaimed.

Greece nodded. "Of course I am."

"Well, I'm here because Turkey dragged me along with him," Egypt said suddenly. Greece stared at him, looking somewhat irritated. "Can I leave now?" Egypt asked.

"No, you can't. I'm not going anywhere alone with him," Turkey spat.

"Be nice, Turkey," Greece mumbled.

"I'm being nice; you're just being an idiot!" Turkey retorted.

"Ah, Greece-san, Turkey-san, and Egypt-san, what a surprise," Japan said, opening the door. "Come in, come in."

Egypt followed Japan inside. Turkey and Greece glared at each other, then went in.

"Japan," Greece said. The Asian looked at Greece, who then handed him a cat. "For company," he explained. "You must be pretty lonely out here."

"Th-thank you," Japan said, taking the cat.

Greece smiled. "You're very welcome."

The cat purred softly.

"How are you feeling these days, Mr. Japan?" Egypt inquired. "I heard from India, who heard from Thailand, who heard from Vietnam, who heard from Taiwan, who heard from China that you were in the hospital."

"He stole my line!" Turkey yelled.

"I've been doing better," Japan replied.

"That's good," Greece said,

"Yes, very good," Japan agreed. "Let me serve you some tea." He went into the kitchen.

"Mr. Japan, why is your katana sitting over there? Isn't it usually on the wall?"

The western countries heard a crash of fine china breaking. "Ah… oh, that's because I want to keep it around for self defense. You never know who's going to be next," Japan said smoothly.

"That makes sense…" Turkey said. Japan returned to the living room, giving them all mismatching teacups. Greece blinked slowly, taking a sip.

"Japan," he said softly. "Is it just me, or is the tea less strong than usual? You seem a bit out of it today."

"Oh?" Japan looked up at Greece, then down at his tea, which was still swirling in the cup. "My apologies, Greece-san. I must still be tired from my stay at the hospital."

Greece nodded. "Don't worry about it." He finished his cup of tea. "Maybe we should go, and let you recover."

"Y-you don't have to leave," Japan stammered as Turkey and Egypt stood up in unison.

"We want you to get better, Japan," Turkey said, smiling. "It wouldn't be good if you were tired and Fate or Time nabbed you."

"B-but…"

"Thanks for having us," Egypt said, remembering Japanese custom and bowing to his host.

Japan instinctively bowed back. "Thank you for visiting," he replied.

He watched and waved as the western nations left. When they were out of view, Japan's small smile faded. His hand was still raised in farewell.

His cell phone rang. "Hello there, Time!" an electronic voice giggled when Japan picked up the phone. "I have a new job for you!"

* * *

Russia stood in his living room, alone for the first time in a while. Ever since China had begun staying over, Russia's life had found a new light.

But China was away at that moment, having been called to his house about business management. The only light Russia had left was his sunflower.

He looked at the single flower sitting on the table. It was old, the final strands of life barely clinging onto it. Russia admired the sunflower's determination to live through the constant cold.

His phone rang. "_Privyet_, this is-!"

"Big brother," a way too familiar voice said.

"Oh, Natalya," Russia said. "What's going on?"

"Have you decided to marry me yet?" she asked, getting straight to the point. "If you marry me, then we will live together and become strong together. We won't have to worry about the killers."

Russia cringed slightly, feeling a bit uncomfortable. He looked at the sunflower, trying to think happy thoughts and calm down. Several of the petals had fallen off, however, so that was ineffective. "No, thank you, Natalya… Yao and I are fine right now."

"Big brother, maybe you should forget China and think of your loving sisters," Natalya suggested, a slight edge to her voice.

"But you have each other! Yekaterina and you work together well, _da_?"

Natalya sighed. "If you helped us, it would be even better, brother!"

"Uh… no thanks," Ivan said,

"Big brother, did you hear something?" Natalya asked suddenly, sounding tense.

"No, it must be at your place."

"How strange… I am sure that I heard someone scream."

Ivan listened closely, worried for his sisters.

"Big brother, big brother, it's Yekaterina, it's Kiev! Kiev is… Kiev is gone!" Natalya said, obviously panicking.

"Natalya?! Oh, no, please, not you and Yekaterina!" Ivan cried.

"Big brother, if this is the end, and if I have to die, please know that I loved you until the end," Natalya said quietly, her words ending with a scream.

"Natalya! _Nyet_, Natalya!" Ivan shouted into the phone. "Please-!"

The line was cut off.

"This can't be…" he muttered to himself. "They can't be gone! Natalya is strong!"

"And Time is stronger, I'll have you know."

"No! Time is a soulless, heartless killer! One without a heart, without a soul, cannot be stronger than one who has both!" Ivan protested.

"Are you so sure about that? Don't you remember the _heartless, soulless _things you did to the other nations? Now you seem stronger than everyone else. Everyone _hates _you, now!"

"No, no, no! My boss, he forced me to-!"

"Don't blame everything on your boss, _Russia-chan_!" the voice mocked.

"But-!"

"No 'but's', _Russia-chan_!"

Ivan fell silent. There seemed to be no way to argue against the voice. It was the cruel reality that he lived in.

"Oh, _Russia-chan_?" the voice called. "They're gone now. Both Ukraine and Belarus."

Despair clawed at his mind as he processed the new information.

"Thank you so much, Time! I appreciate it very much. Now, if you could do that last errand for me, I would love it so much, you know!" Ivan heard, the despair working with helplessness to scratch away at his sanity.

"You're Fate," Ivan said aloud. "You've come to kill me."

"How wonderful, I don't have to debrief you, then!" Fate cackled. All Ivan could see was the white mask gleaming amongst the darkness.

"Why? Why did you turn against your comrades?" Ivan asked.

"Bah! How boring! They all ask the same thing: 'Why did you betray us?' Always the same exact question!" Fate said, throwing his arms into the air.

"Then how? How could you be so evil that you'd turn against us?" Ivan hissed.

"Hm… Good one! Because of you."

Russia froze.

"Oh, not because of you _in particular_, but _everyone_," Fate clarified. "As I told someone earlier, killing people, like normal humans, isn't that fun anymore. So I'm killing everyone."

"It's homicide, Fate, you're killing innocent humans and countries!" Ivan yelled.

"Innocent?" Fate repeated, scoffing. "When were we ever innocent? All of us have killed people at some point. Admit it, you have too! And the people don't appreciate us. They hurt us. Their decisions hurt us. Is that what you call 'innocent,' Ivan?"

Ivan didn't reply.

"Has the cat got your tongue? Aw, let me help you!" Fate stepped closer to Ivan, but Ivan scooted away.

"Stay away from me!"

"But I can't kill you quite yet, Ivan. Moscow hasn't been taken care of yet!"

"We are _in_ Moscow!" Ivan cried. "Do you intend to –?!"

"I intend to hit two birds with one stone, if you get my gist," Fate explained, laughing mechanically.

"Kill yourself?!"

"Of course not, Russia-_chan_! Time's going to be here soon! I'll be out of here!"

_BOOM._

Screams hit the air immediately. "What did you do?!"

"Bombed Moscow," Fate said simply, picking at his teeth. "Delayed reaction, of course."

Ivan felt the explosion in his heart and doubled over, hacking up blood.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll have to help you with that." Ivan couldn't move away; he saw the killer move from the corner of his eye, then felt another pain from his stomach.

"Did that hurt, by any chance?" Fate asked, rubbing his fist. "Goodness, I haven't punched anyone in a long time."

Ivan held his stomach, glaring at the killer.

"You see, Russia, I've grown stronger," Fate said. "I was weak in the old days. I'm much stronger now." He dealt another blow, this time to Ivan's back. He fell to the floor, the pressure too much.

Fate laughed, the sound more like an echo from a distance in Ivan's mind. "Soon, you'll be joining your dear sisters in Heaven, won't you?" The laughing stopped suddenly. "Oh, that's right. There is no heaven for heartless people like us, hm? See you in Hell."

Fate cackled heartily and went out the door to face the burning city. "Oh, Time!" he screamed, watching a plane fly over his head. "I'm over here!"

The plane paused in the air above him. Time himself lowered a rope ladder to Fate who climbed up partway, stopping to admire the flames below him.

A final missile was released from the plane, hurtling directly towards Ivan's house, meeting the structure with a satisfying explosion.

"Thank you for your assistance, Time. It is highly appreciated," Fate said, his tone warm and welcoming. He climbed up the rest of the ladder and sat on the floor of the plane.

Time looked at his fellow killer, his black mask emotionless. "Of course, Fate," he replied shortly, looking back out the window.

"Ah… tell me, how did you get these kind people to help us?" Fate asked, gesturing to the terrified looking people flying the plane.

"I told them that they could follow my orders or could be killed," Time answered. "I'll dispose of them after I land back in Japan."

"Hm… Who do you think would take claim of Russia's land?"

"I expect that Yao would take claim as soon as he learns of Ivan's death," Time confirmed. "I'm sure he'll be heartbroken, but he'll protect Russia with all that he has."

Fate was quiet for a bit, and then responded with "I see." He stood up, walking to the other side of the plane. "I expect that Estonia and Lithuania will try to take claims as well."

"I suppose that Poland will, too," Time added quietly. "My boss will try to go for the eastern side, but we Japanese are more reserved, as you probably already know."

"Mm, you're right." Fate seemed to smile from under his mask. "I'll spend the night at your place; there is no one but you, correct?"

"Quite right."

"I'll stay in a hotel, just for precautions, and leave you by yourself."

"That works."

"Perfect."

Time pulled off his mask, his exhaustion shown all over his face. "How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"All this killing. I'd expect that guilt would eat at your mind, too."

"Hm, it probably is," Fate said. "I just remember that no matter what, there's no heaven for me. Not for any of us. So whether I kill or not, it won't matter in the end."

Time almost felt sorry for Fate.

"Say, Time, do you think there's a god someplace?" Fate asked suddenly. It seemed like a question that a human child would ask. Nations didn't believe in any gods, most of the time.

"Perhaps so," Time said thoughtfully.

"I don't know, actually," Fate admitted. "Sometimes I feel like God is giving me the luck and whatever. But then despair comes along and knocks me down, and God doesn't give a crap, does he?" Time thought he heard a faint sob from Fate. "God doesn't love me, does he?! I'm a killer! We all are!"

Kiku awkwardly patted Fate on the back. He couldn't think of a way to contradict that.

Nations were killers, there was no denying it. Whether they killed humans or other nations, a killer was a killer. It was just the bitter truth.

* * *

**A few days later…**

Netherlands groaned. He had so much work these days; even more since the killings began. He was living together with Belgium, and they were living a fortunately good life.

He was getting tired of having waffles for breakfast every day, however. As delivious as they were, one could only have so many waffles.

It was worth it, he figured. Knowing that his sister was safe and near him was a wonderful feeling. Perhaps if they were near each other while they died, it wouldn't be so bad…

Netherlands shook his head. No! To think of death as "not so bad" would be his end, mentally. He had to stay on track. For Belgium.

He tried to focus on his work, but his eyes sort of glazed over and his thoughts went to _Ooh, a flower. That's a pretty flower._

"_Frère_, are you doing okay?" Belgium's voice interrupted his thought process.

_Distracted again. Stupid!_ "Yes, I'm fine," he called.

Belgium came into the room anyway, holding a tray with tea and biscuits on it. "Take a break, _frère. _It would be good for you." She poured him some tea and set the cup in front of him.

"Thanks," he said, actually meaning it. He took a sip, pausing to feel the warm liquid go down his throat and settle in his stomach, a warm feeling filling his senses.

Belgium smiled, drinking some of the tea herself. "Have some cookies, too."

Netherlands took a biscuit and popped into his mouth, savoring the taste. "My compliments to the chef," he said.

"Aw, thank you!" Belgium blushed slightly.

He smiled, taking another sip of the tea. "I should get back to work now."

"I said, take a break. You're not getting as much work done as you could be." She took one of her brother's hands. "We should go outside, get some fresh air. Tend to the garden, there's some weeds growing. Take a walk to the river and have a picnic, the sun isn't too warm and there aren't many clouds. Come, now, it's a beautiful day!"

He let his sister pull him outside, passing by the garden. It didn't seem to need tending – the grass was cut perfectly, the bushes were trimmed, and the roses were blooming. Netherlands admired the perfect weather; it was a nice change of feel.

Belgium led him to the nearby riverside, where they walked together, talking normally, as If there wasn't a killer running around sniping nations.

They arrived back at the house; both feeling more relaxed than before. Netherlands was smiling more than he usually did, and Belgium basked in the light of it.

"That was fun," Netherlands said contentedly.

"Yes it was," Belgium agreed. "Now you can head back to work."

Netherlands turned to head back inside. "Aren't you going to come inside…?"

Belgium wasn't there anymore.

"Oh, Netherlands!" a strange electronic voice sang. "We're up here!"

He looked up to see two masked figures and his sister, seemingly fast asleep. She was caught in a net, held up by the person in the black mask.

Fate held up a microphone, and his voice blared down at Netherlands. "No worries, Bella here is only asleep! But maybe not for long."

"You bastards!" Netherlands swore.

"Ooh, that wasn't very nice! Time, if you will."

Netherlands felt a tranquilizer hit him. He nodded off, knowing that he was being hoisted into the air.

**Hello, Xiang here…. Agh, don't kill me! I'm sorry I updated later than I was supposed to, but believe it or not, I have other things to do too!**

**Ugh, I'm not able to stay on for much longer, so shoutouts! To: Purestrongpoem, TheGrammarHawk, EmiCyanSayMii and CanadatheNinja! Thanks for the reviews! And of course, to all of you who are following and favorited! Your support is appreciated, very much.**

**I'm trying to update more frequently, but chapter writing is not easy. Sorry about that…**

**Reviews sound nice, so please review?**


	8. The Rock

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Eight: The Rock**

Iceland sat in his room at Denmark's house, looking over at a picture on his nightstand. It was a picture of Hong Kong and him from a while ago.

He missed the Asian, as annoying as he was sometimes. He didn't really call Leon, since he knew that England's economy was still struggling to go up since the destruction of London. Also, that manager person was irritating. Emil didn't email, either, since Leon's email was probably full without his help.

Someone knocked on the door. "_Bror_, there's a letter for you," Norway called.

Iceland flung open the door and snatched the envelope from his brother's hands, slamming the door in Norway's face.

"You're welcome," Norway muttered, going back to the TV room (where he and Denmark were having their millionth Mario Kart rematch).

Iceland ripped open the envelope and unfolded the letter.

_XX Month, OO Day_

_ Hey, Emil._

_ I'm going back to snail mail, ugh, I know. But I think it's like, the only way I'll be able to communicate with you effectively. Manager Lady keeps intercepting my calls and my inbox is full of stupid business stuff. Mailbox is totally empty most of the time, so I'm taking advantage of it._

_ How's life? Is Denmark still annoying you? Is Finland still forcing everyone to watch gay flicks or whatever? Is your brother still pressuring you to call him "Brother dear"?_

_ As for me, I've been seriously bored. Teacher wants me to come home, so he's been sending me spam mail. Mei's been doing a good job of taking care of my region, so I'm not worried about my people so much. I'm learning how boring it is to be a country – paperwork day and night, meetings with the boss, calling other countries, managing imports and exports, etc. I feel bad for you now, how the heck did you hang out with me so much?_

_ Bleah, I'm fortunately able to make my own food here. You do know how horrible the food here in England is, right? I'm somehow making my way through life here, and I hope that I'll be able to leave soon. Sealand's seriously getting on my nerves now. I have no idea why he wants to be a country so badly. If I were Fate, then I'd kill him next, he's that annoying!_

_ Speak of the devil; he's barged into my room. Something about a monster under his bed. Wonderful, I bet it's just Seborga._

_ Turns out I was right… what the heck was he doing in Sealand's room anyway? Oh yeah, did you hear about those two Australian micronations, Wy and Hutt River? They apparently died, along with Australia, you know? _

_ I suppose that Seborga is just afraid, then. I let them be, and allowed Seborga to stay the night. Argh, the gentlemanly side to England is seriously getting to me, why?!_

_ I'd better head to sleep now, my head is killing me. Write back soon, yeah?_

_ Leon Wang_

_ P.S. I really hope Manager Lady isn't intercepting my letters too. Gah, if you're Manager Lady, then get away from my private life!_

Emil read the letter over and over again; full of happiness that Leon hadn't given up on communication. Who cared if they used snail mail?

He folded the letter carefully and placed in his drawer to keep, then sprinted downstairs to inform the other Nordics of the letter.

"Guess what?" he asked, unable to contain his excitement.

"Better not be 'chicken butt,'" Sweden muttered.

"What happened, Emil?" Finland asked.

"Hong Kong sent him a letter," Norway interrupted, before Emil could even open his mouth to reply.

"Awesome!" Denmark shouted, leaping out of his chair. "C'mon, let's all get drinks for celebration!"

"Matthias, you just want a reason to drink," Norway said, rolling his eyes. "Let's not."

"How sweet!" Finland exclaimed. "What did it say?"

"Tino, don't get too ecstatic about it," Sweden said quietly. "Prob'ly not a love letter, y'know."

Emil turned pink. "Leon probably doesn't swing that way," he sputtered. "I-I definitely don't!"

Norway raised his eyebrows, his face calculating. "Are you sure, though?"

"About what?" Emil demanded.

"That you don't, ah, 'play for that team?'" Norway explained, making air quotation marks.

"Ooh, Emil's blushing!" Matthias called.

"Shut up, Denmark!" Emil yelled, his face bright red. "And Lukas, I'm pretty sure I don't play for that team."

"Oh, but maybe Leon's an exception?" his brother smirked, not giving up. "He is actually pretty cute, for a boy."

"Seriously, he's my friend!" Emil said indignantly.

"Seriously, you're gay," Lukas retorted.

"No, I'm not!"

"Pretty sure you are."

"Leon is pretty, though, Emil," Matthias remarked. "You should ask him out while you have the chance! I'm sure the girls are all over him."

"Let the girls be all over him! I don't like him in that way!"

"You don't love him, that's bullshit," Lukas declared.

"Get off his case, you two," Tino said. He and Berwald had been just watching, but Tino couldn't take it anymore. "If he says that he doesn't love Leon, then he doesn't love Leon."

"Oh, all right," Denmark pouted. "I'm going to my room."

"_Bror_, if you decide to change your mind, talk to me, okay?" Lukas said. "I've got some advice that you might find valuable."

"I wouldn't change my mind! He's my friend! Just my friend!" Emil shouted.

"Emil, calm down," Berwald said, his deep voice soothing and quiet.

Emil took a deep breath. "I'm heading back to my room."

"Make sure to write a reply," Tino advised.

"I was planning on it, actually." Emil returned to his room, grabbed some paper, and began to write.

_XX Month, OO Day._

_ What's up, Leon?_

_ Snail mail isn't bad at all, what are you talking about? I know, I seem like China right now, old-fashioned and whatever, but snail mail's better than intercepted calls. And I guess it's better for you in general, with all that work that you must have._

_ Yes, Matthias is being really annoying, and Lukas is too. They were convinced that I really liked you, in a more-than-friends way. I guess that Lukas gave up on "brother dear", and I'm glad he did. We haven't had movie night since that last time, but I hope that we don't have to go through another one of those. I'd die._

_ China, sending you spam mail? Sounds like him, I guess. I'd expect that Taiwan would be doing a good job; her country is in great shape. Psh, being me isn't that hard, though. Iceland isn't really that big of a deal in the world, unless that volcano decides to blow on us again, which probably won't happen. England, on the other hand, is one of the more powerful countries in the world! But geez, Hong Kong by itself is an important port city, so I wouldn't think that it'd be that much different, in terms of type of work. Amount, on the other hand…._

_ Good, you make your own food. I wouldn't want you to die because of what you ate! I hope you get to leave soon too, then we could hang out more, right? Sealand is annoying; I'm pretty sure I met him. He declared himself my upperclassman, just what the heck. Psh, I totally agree with you though, if I could choose someone to kill, I guess it'd be Sealand. Why don't you just send him back to Sve's place, then? Oh, right, Sve's staying here._

_ Seborga was in Sealand's room? Kind of creepy. _

_ Anyway, I'm out of things to write about, really. Make sure to get enough sleep every night, you really need it now. You reply soon, okay? I miss you._

_ Emil Steilsson_

_ P.S. If you're Leon's Manager Lady reading through this, you should stop prodding through Leon's life!_

"Mr. Puffin, are you around?" Emil asked.

The bird emerged from his resting place. "What's going on?"

"I need you to deliver this letter to Leon."

"Isn't that the boy from Hong Kong? That's too far," Mr. Puffin said.

"He's living in England right now," Emil explained. "I'm sure you can do it. And don't come back without a reply, you hear?"

"Fine, fine."

Emil quickly wrote _P.P.S. Mr. Puffin's not leaving until he gets a reply. Do me a favor and feed him some fish or something while he's at your place._

He rolled up the letter and gave it to Mr. Puffin. The bird flew out the window into the sky.

Emil watched Mr. Puffin fly away. He wished that one day, he and Leon could be a free as that, not worried about being killed, but just flying off into the distance.

* * *

"Mr. Wang, your tea."

"Oh please, Sebastian, just call me Leon," Hong Kong said, accepting the tea. He looked at his butler. "Honestly, did you call England 'Mr. Kirkland,' too?"

"Yes, I did, sir," the butler replied stiffly. "And my name is Adrian, sir, not Sebastian." The butler was an older man, with his graying hair drawn back in an organized ponytail.

"Sheesh, loosen up! BrowBoy was a cranky old man, just like Teacher," Hong Kong claimed. "And as you can see, I'm a teenager, a modern-day teenager who has a remarkably good vocabulary, considering that many of today's teenagers have been reduced to merely text language." He paused and took a sip of tea. "No offense meant to the reader, of course."

"Your point is, sir?" Adrian asked, being intelligent enough to tell that Hong Kong was a unique teenager, indeed.

"My point is that you don't have to be so uptight. I look and act much younger than you, despite the fact that I'm obviously older than I seem. I don't require as much respect. And also, I'm not used to it," he admitted.

"That is understandable, sir."

"Good," Hong Kong glared at the numerous piles of paperwork that sat on his desk, as if a staring contest would get some of the forms filled out. "You can go, I suppose."

Adrian bowed his head and left.

Hong Kong grabbed his pen and began to work again. He didn't care about business with France, and knowing BrowBoy, he would have rejected it. No, he didn't want to know what Poland wanted. A call came in from Cuba, something about importing lumber or who-knows-what from Canada. Wait, who was Canada?

Oh, right. Canada. Matthew Williams was his name.

"Sure, have your governmental person call mine, then. I approve, because we totally need more paper, you know?" Hong Kong said sarcastically to Cuba. "Eventually that paper will just turn into more work for me. Just wonderful."

"I feel you, man," Cuba said sympathetically. "A lot of South America is askin' for my help. So it's not just Canada, America and Cuba that I have to take care of, but Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Panama, Brazil, Chile, and more."

"Whoa, don't pull out all of your hair, yeah?" Hong Kong said.

"I wasn't planning on it," Cuba laughed. "But I might."

"Don't die on us, either. That's two continents you're taking care of."

"Again, not planning on it," Cuba repeated with a sigh. "But no one plans death."

"True," Hong Kong sighed. "Cross your fingers and hope for the best."

"Yup, that's what we do. Hope you survive the day, Hong Kong."

"You too, Cuba."

Hong Kong hung up and sighed. He heard a tapping at his window. It looked like a puffin was trying to get in. He stood up and opened the window, letting the bird fly inside. The puffin seemed to sigh in relief as it dropped a roll of paper on Hong Kong's desk and came to a rest on his chair.

"Uh… thanks, I guess?" Hong Kong said to the puffin.

"You better be thankful," the puffin replied gruffly, fluffing his feathers. "Do you have any idea how long it took to fly from Reykjavik to London? And how much energy it took? I'm really hungry now, do you have any fish?"

"Oh, you're Mr. Puffin, aren't you?" Hong Kong realized.

"No duh. Fish. Now," Mr. Puffin ordered.

"Fine." He pulled a rope that signaled Adrian. "What's that, by the way?"

"A bomb, obviously," the puffin said. "Nope, that's Iceland's reply."

"That was quicker than I thought." He picked up the roll of paper and read through the letter, laughing softly at Norway's and Denmark's theory that Iceland loved him and Iceland's reaction to his daily life.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," Hong Kong said.

"Sir?" Adrian entered the room.

"Could you get me a plate of fish? For the puffin," he asked. Adrian bowed and left again.

"Better not be canned tuna," Mr. Puffin grumbled, deciding that the most comfortable area of the room was the pillows sitting next to the window, and, sitting atop the soft cushions, watched the sunset.

Leon returned to his desk and went back to work. "I'm aware that you'll be staying until I have written a reply," he said. "Go ahead and rest for a night. How long was the flight?"

"About a day and a half," Mr. Puffin replied. "Better than flying all the way to Hong Kong."

"True. Adrian should be back with some fish soon." Leon set a form in the "finished" pile and continued work.

Mr. Puffin looked at Leon closely. "You're more polite than I remember."

"Many things have changed, Mr. Puffin," Leon said seriously. "I change with the times, I suppose." Adrian came in with a plate of fish and set it in front of the puffin.

"That makes sense," Mr. Puffin said to Leon, chewing on a fish. "You're a lot like Emil, you know that? As if you're made for each other."

"Ha, that's why we're friends," Leon laughed.

Mr. Puffin watch the Asian do his work, picking at his beak a bit. Leon and Emil were rather similar, although Leon tended to tease Emil more. _Heck, they could be more than friends, the way their relationship goes,_ the puffin thought, smirking to himself.

They heard a knock at the door. "Come in," Leon said casually.

Adrian burst into the room, breathing heavily, as if he had just run a marathon. His gray hair was falling out of order, away from the neat ponytail it was in. "Sir," he gasped. "The young master, Peter, is missing!"

* * *

Netherlands eventually came to, his vision blurry and his hearing muffled. He got the feeling that he was still in the air, so he assumed that the group of two killers, his sister and him were still flying to whatever hideout.

"See, I told you, Belgium. I didn't kill him. I'm not quite that cruel," a calm voice said.

Netherlands snapped awake. "Bella!" he cried, trying to move, but his head spun and he laid back down.

"Shh, shh. Netherlands, please refrain from moving or you will send both yourself and your sister to your deaths," the calm voice warned.

Despite the warning, Netherlands continued to squirm, not believing the killer. The floor under him swung back and forth and he froze.

"I told you so," the voice sighed. "Now I have to punish you."

Belgium began to scream out of fear. Netherlands, too, was panicking, trying to find a way out of punishment when the platform seemed to suddenly drop. He looked up and saw his sister, in a cage held up by a rope, hoisted a bit above him.

Netherlands slowly sat up, careful not to move too much. He was also in a cage, held in the air above a pool of sorts. The pool, however, was not filled with water.

"What you're looking at right now, Netherlands, is acid," a new voice announced. The killer with the white mask came into the room. "I'm sorry about my tardiness, I had business with a bird before now. Don't you dare laugh."

Both the Netherlands and Belgium were too petrified with fear to really register what the masked killer had said.

"Tsk, you two aren't really listening, are you?" the white mask complained. "Whatever. I'm Fate and that over there is Time. We're here to kill you! But before that, I would like to have some fun! I promise that it won't hurt… too much."

Netherlands starter to listen to the killer's words carefully, hoping to find a flaw in the plan. Anything might help him get Belgium out, right?

"I'll explain the rules now, okay Over here, we have a Monopoly Junior board! Yes, you heard me, we're children playing Monopoly Junior again! How nostalgic! So you know how the game goes, you can buy the different squares and you'll get a booth, whoever goes in the square has to pay you the amount you paid for. If you get two booths that are right next to each other, whoever goes in those squares has to pay double the price! If you land on the 'chance' square, you can draw a card! Every time you pass the 'go' square, you get two Monopoly dollars! Get it?" Fate asked. "As for the reader, if you haven't played Monopoly junior, I would suggest looking up the instructions before the next chapter. Use Google, okay? I don't like Bing so much."

Netherlands and Belgium nodded, signaling their understanding.

"But there's a catch! Each dollar represents five centimeters! Say Miss Belgium had to pay me a dollar at whatever stand! Then she would be lowered five centimeters, toward the acid! But if Mister Netherlands had to pay me five dollars, then he would be lowered twenty centimeters! Whoever loses all of their money first dies first!"

"What if you lose money?" Belgium asked, her voice quivering.

"Good question! If Time or I have to pay one of you, then we'll tip the scale five centimeters closer to level on both sides! That is, five centimeters per dollar, of course."

"And if you are the ones who lose first?" Netherlands added, trying to hide his fear.

"Oh, no, it's any one of you two!" Fate exclaimed. "So if Time and I are in last place, then we'll take away the acid and give you two a less painful death," he explained. "But if it's one of you that loses, then we're using this pool here. Just so you know, if you fall into there… Time, if you would?"

Time pressed a button. A cage came out of the acid, a mere skeleton within it. Belgium whimpered softly.

"I guess his intestines are still floating around there someplace," Fate said thoughtfully. "Oh, you can't recognize him in this state, can you? Maybe this will help."

The white masked killer put an oversized sailor hat on the skull.

* * *

India sat in Vietnam's living room quietly, not really paying attention to anything around him. He was vaguely aware that Vietnam and Thailand were in the room, but they didn't feel so important to India. He sat and pondered.

Thailand looked at his friend, a bit worried. India had been quiet for quite a while, and it was getting awkward. "Raj?" he called.

"Hm?" India said, his expression still faraway.

"Are you all right?" Thailand asked.

"I'm fine; I'm just thinking…"

"About what?"

"A dream I had last night…" India drew off.

Vietnam became somewhat interested. "What happened in the dream?"

India was silent for a moment, then said, "Floating. I felt as though I was floating. I was sinking. When I tried to cry for help, my mouth felt as though it were on fire. Then all of me was on fire, but there were no flames. I just burned until I was nothing except clean bone. The rest of me floated while I sank, lower and lower.

"A bit creepy, huh?" Thailand said.

"I guess so. It was rather disturbing to see my liver and intestines floating above me," India replied.

Vietnam was slightly green.

"I was just wondering what it meant," India said, clasping his hands together. "Was it merely a dream? I think not. Was it a foretelling of the future? If so, whose future? If not, is it something that happened to someone, present or before?"

Thailand tapped his chin. "I see. I would hope it isn't a sign, though. It doesn't sound comfortable."

"It wasn't comfortable to dream, either. I woke up on the ground," India said. "Thankfully, it was the ground and not whatever substance was in the dream."

"I wouldn't want to dream that again, were I you," Thailand admitted. "I don't think my stomach would be able to handle seeing that again, let alone once."

"Oh, I want to witness it again." India smiled slightly. "I might figure out more about it."

Thailand shook his head. "Raj Singh, You are one strange person."

"I realize that, Kasem Chao," India said. "It just means that I think more than you in terms of creepy dreams. No offense intended."

"None taken," Thailand reassured him. "Lien, you seem a bit sick. Why don't you go lay down?"

"I think that's just what I'll do," Vietnam said weakly. "If you'll excuse me."

Thailand and India watched her wobble to her room.

"Do you think she wasn't able to stomach that?" India asked.

"Without a doubt. Lien is strong, but stories like your dream aren't the best for her," Thailand said, chuckling a bit.

"Ah, well," India shrugged. "She was the one who asked."

"And she did want to know."

"I understand that."

They were both silent for a moment. "Next time I have a dream like that, I'll give a warning beforehand, then," India suggested.

Thailand nodded. "Sounds good to me."

India stood up and stretched. "Perhaps going out for a walk might help me figure out this dream."

"Be careful, Hanoi's residents aren't all good at driving. If they're anything like Lien, that is…" Thailand shuddered.

"Haha, remember, I live in New Delhi. Our traffic and drivers are notorious," India said. "But I'll keep your advice in mind."

"Hey, Raj, do you think we're going to die soon?" Thailand asked, suddenly serious.

India blinked slowly. "There's no telling until the time comes. I would hope not."

Thailand nodded. "Have fun on your walk, then."

"Thank you." India walked out the door, new thoughts beginning to clog his mind.

* * *

"What…" China breathed.

"I'm sorry, China," Estonia said. "But it's true. Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus are all gone."

"But…"

"If you want to take claims, you might want to do it soon," Estonia interrupted. "I'm taking care of Ukraine already, and Lithuania's taking care of Belarus. I hear that Japan's already starting to take care of Eastern Russia, and Latvia's beginning to take some of the west."

"I-I'll help," China said. "I trust you too, but I feel as though…"

"We understand. Just do what you need to do. Goodbye, China."

China set down the phone. Just as he had thought… he would be gone for a few days and Ivan was gone. Gone forever.

His vision blurred and something fell on his hand.

Water?

No, tears.

Yao began to weep uncontrollably, unable to stop the shaking, the tears, and the grief. It was an unbearable combination of actions, stabbing at him brutally. He wanted to go to his room, perhaps remain in there for a long time.

He wanted to stay there until there weren't any more killers.

He wanted to stay there until Kiku got better.

He wanted to stay there until Ivan came back.

Among the tears, the sobs, came a forced laugh. Until Ivan came back?! Then he would stay in his room for eternity.

He quickly wiped his eyes, a new problem appearing. Why had it taken so long for the information to get to him? It had been six entire days…

Yao shook his head. Right now, he needed to get to Moscow, one way or another. He needed to see it for himself.

One plane ride later, as well as some driving, Yao arrived. He wandered through the shambles of what used to be the proud capital of Russia.

He followed the cracked roads through the wreckage. They were familiar to him, though he and Ivan hadn't stayed together for that long.

His breath was visible in the cold air, although one could barely see it amongst the fog.

He sighed.

Estonia was within the city, along with Lithuania and Latvia. Lithuania greeted the elder country. "We knew you'd come here," he said.

They walked together, in a group of four, all mourning the same person. Latvia approached the center of the city, looking around at the ruins.

"Nothing seems to be left at all," he said aloud. "I hate to say it, but Fate and Time really wiped out this place well…"

"Raivis," Estonia said. "You shouldn't acknowledge them. In any way."

"Sorry, Eduard," Latvia said. "I just felt as though…" He shook his head.

Yao continued on, walking into the rubble. Lithuania followed him, the rest behind Lithuania.

"Oh…" Toris said. "This place…"

Yao stared at the ground. What used to be a large mansion, enough to fit the entire Soviet Union, was now reduced to little more than a pile of rocks and wood.

"Ivan's house," Eduard said grimly. "Let's take a look."

"Y-you mean…" Raivais stuttered. "Look for stuff?"

"Exactly."

The four countries scoured the rubble, searching for anything that could be recovered.

Yao, not really feeling awake, unconsciously turned over some wood. All he saw under it was additional wood and a section of carpet, covered with dust. He moved on.

"Oh, look at this…"

Latvia held up a piece of fabric, a large one colored with red and yellow. A familiar symbol, the hammer and sickle, was fading off of it.

"Ah, isn't that… the flag that used to hang on the wall?" Lithuania sighed. "I'll take it to my place, for now."

Latvia handed the flag to Lithuania carefully, then continued searching.

Estonia straightened up. "Yao, I think you'd probably want to keep this…"

Yao blinked. Eduard handed him a frame, a broken one, the picture in it about to fall out. It showed Ivan and Yao, sharing that giant scarf of his.

Yao remembered – that picture was taken in the dead of winter, when the heater was broken, and they had to huddle next to each other, in front of the giant fireplace. Ivan had wrapped his scarf around him. That had been the first time Yao had seen Ivan smile – truly smile.

He continued to look around, more alive all of a sudden. He uncovered a small parcel, the wrapping ripped slightly. He tore open the rest of the wrapping, throwing the paper on the ground.

It was a scarf, one identical to the one Russia had.

Yao held it close, using it to hide his face, sure that he was crying again.

Toris approached him, patting his back. "It'll be okay… hm?" He bent down and handed Yao a piece of paper. Yao unfolded it, then cried into the scarf, harder and louder.

_Welcome home, Yao. – Ivan_

**Hello again, this is my second update in a week! This is truly an accomplishment for me, but I was lucky enough to be able to finish writing it today. **

**Shout outs to: TheGrammarHawk, Purestrongpoem, EmiCyanSayMii, and Hetalia Lover-Arthur! And of course, those of you who followed and favorited!**

**Reviews sound nice, so please review! Any advice is great, and I wonder, who do you think is Fate?**


	9. The Scale

**And They All Die in the End – Chapter Nine: The Scale**

Austria sat down at the piano at Germany's house. No, it wasn't the concert grand that he had at home, but it was better than nothing. He relaxed himself, taking deep breaths before delicately raising his hands and pressing a key –

"Germany!" he shouted, utterly disgusted. "You should tune your piano! It sounds terrible!"

"But the middle 'C' sounds like middle 'C', no?" Germany shouted back.

"It's ridiculously sharp! You're just ignorant," Austria said.

"It isn't ridiculously sharp," Germany argued. "It's just you and your pitch-perfect hearing."

"Have it tuned," Austria demanded. "Or how in the world will I be able to practice?!"

Germany looked into the room, an obviously frustrated expression on his face. "We're in the middle of what could be the apocalypse. And what do you want me to do?!"

"Tune the piano, of course," Austria replied simply.

"You are a country, for goodness' sake, Roderich!" Germany yelled, using the Austrian's true name for emphasis. "You should be more serious about this! Any one of us could die, at any moment!"

"All the more reason to play the piano, then! A finely tuned piano! I must hear my playing again!" Austria shot back.

Germany sighed. "You're paying for it."

"What?! This is your piano, you should take responsibility –!"

"You're the one who wants to play it so badly," Germany pointed out.

Austria huffed. "Fine, then I shall deal with the tormenting sound for the time being." He lifted his hands again and began to play a furious sounding Sonata.

Germany shook his head and returned to the kitchen, where Italy was making some sort of dish. Another recipe for pasta, chances were. "Be careful with the flour, Italy," He said wearily. "I just cleaned the kitchen."

"Yes, sir!" Italy said, saluting.

Walking into the living room, he collapsed on the sofa. Germany just felt so tired these days, with the entire world coming to him for help. He also made sure that meetings on Skype happened every Saturday, which was annoying to organize.

His cell phone rang. "Hallo?"

"West, it's me," Prussia said.

"Yes, what is it?" Germany asked impatiently.

"I'm in what used to be Brussels, Belgium," Prussia said, his voice suddenly beginning to shake. "I just wanted to say hi to Bella, but Brussels is completely destroyed! I have no idea how Amsterdam is, but I went to Bella's house, where she and her brother were staying but they're not there!"

Germany took a deep breath. "Gilbert, get back to Spain's house as soon as you can."

"I'm sorry, West, for troubling you; you must be busy –!"

"Just head back to Spain's house!"

"…Got it."

Germany hung up. "Belgium and Netherlands… are missing?"

"They're missing. Both of them."

"So my ears haven't failed me." Austria sighed. "I was almost hoping I was wrong."

"Gilbert found out," Germany said.

"Is that so?" Austria said, sitting down as well. "I guess that he has been acting more reasonable lately, so I believe him."

Germany's cell phone rang again. "What is it this time –?"

"This is Hong Kong. Sealand is missing. He's been missing for two days."

"More people missing?!" Germany cried.

"Wait, more people?" Austria said.

"That's all I have to say," Hong Kong said. "I've had search parties sent out, but Peter doesn't seem to be in the country. Sorry to bother you, but I assume you know best." He hung up.

"Who else?"

"Sealand," Germany confirmed. "We don't know where they could be."

"Does Sealand even have a capital?" Austria asked.

"I doubt it. I assume that even though Sealand has declared itself a 'nation', it's still connected to London, and London is still struggling so… he could be dead, now."

"I don't like the thought of that."

"Neither do I," Germany said. "We'll call a world meeting today."

-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-

"So they're… missing?" Turkey clarified.

"Right," Germany replied. "Amsterdam and Brussels are already in ruins."

Greece was actually awake for a change, paying close attention to every word. "And where is Hong Kong, today?" he asked.

"He's checking on Sealand as of now," Sweden said. "He told me he would." Sweden and Finland were sharing a screen, and everyone could see that Finland's eyes were red.

"So the question is, what are we going to do about it?" Estonia said, pushing his glasses up. "Are we just going to wait?"

"Veh?! We couldn't do that!" Italy said. "Miss Belgium and her big brother are in trouble, and if we don't do anything now, they don't have a chance!"

"Ita-chan's right!" Spain agreed. "We have to try and find them."

"What's the point?"

Everyone's attention turned to the screen that just appeared – Hong Kong's. There was a lot of noise in the background, signaling that he was using his cell phone, on a helicopter, chances were. "What's the point?" he repeated. "Fate and Time already got them, chances are. Sealand is destroyed, for those who wanted to know."

Germany watched Finland lean into Sweden's shoulder, hiding his tears.

"Don't be so negative!" South Korea yelled at his brother. "They might still be alive!"

"What are you proposing?" Hong Kong shot back. "That they might have somehow been saved? Their capitals are gone, Yong Soo. All of Sealand has been destroyed."

"They might be held in custody, you know," India suggested.

"You do realize that Fate and Time tend to strike quickly and run?" Hong Kong pointed out.

"We should still look for them!" South Korea declared.

"Stop fighting!" China shrieked.

Everything was silent.

"Japan, aru, what do you say?" China asked.

Japan looked up. "I say we look for them. There's a chance."

Several of the nations muttered in agreement. Hong Kong frowned.

"I agree with Hong Kong," Prussia said. "Fate and Time seem to do their work quickly and efficiently. Why would they start stalling?"

"To fool us all," South Korea argued. "To test us."

"They don't seem to want to get caught, though," Switzerland sighed. "Why would they test us? If we succeed, then they'll get caught."

"Switzerland, whose side are you supporting?" Austria asked quietly.

"I'm neutral, of course," Switzerland said.

"That's what I thought," Austria frowned. "But you seem to lean toward Hong Kong's argument."

"And your point is?" Switzerland demanded.

"Okay, stop," Germany said. "There are several matters we must agree upon. First of all, what do you propose we do about Amsterdam and Brussels?"

"I'll help try and rebuild them," Romano said. "What?!" he asked, looking at the nations' astonished faces.

"That's settled, then. Romano, try to rally the people of Belgium and Netherlands, and support the building of new capitals."

"I already said that, potato bastard."

"Right. And what will we do about Belgium and Netherlands themselves?"

"We'll form a search party!" South Korea said. "We'll look in any place that seems suspicious."

"That's unreasonable, isn't it?" Hong Kong scoffed, raising an eyebrow. "How will you be able to get to all the places in the entire world within time to save their lives? Remember, Fate and Time are here, listening to this meeting."

"And we'll defeat them, one way or another," Korea replied confidently.

"We'll leave the search to you, Yong Soo," Germany said. "And… what about Sealand? If he's somehow alive despite his entire country being destroyed, then how will he live? I suspect that England couldn't fund the building of another Sealand…?"

"That's right. I've got my work up to my neck as it is," Hong Kong sighed.

"I'll fund it!" Finland said fiercely. "Anything to get Peter back home…"

Germany nodded. "It's settled, then."

With that, the meeting ended.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

"We're ready to play the game now, Mr. Netherlands and Ms. Belgium!" Fate giggled. Netherlands grew pale, paler than he already was. They had no idea how long they had been trapped in the building, but they estimated three, four days.

"What took us so long, you ask?" the killer said, even though Netherlands and Belgium hadn't opened their mouths. "We were invited to a world meeting. So of course, Time and I had to return to our homes. We apologize for leaving you alone." He set a Monopoly Junior board and a bag of pieces on a large table in front of the pool of acid and began to set up the game. "Time should be here momentarily."

Belgium looked at Netherlands, her expression terrified. Netherlands tried to remain strong, tried to keep his pride.

Soon enough, the black-masked killer entered the room. "My apologies for my tardiness," he said quietly, his voice calm and smooth.

"Don't worry about it, you're here just in time!" the white-masked killer sang. "The game begins now!"

Fate grinned; Netherlands could practically see the insane smile from under the mask. "I'll be the red car, Time, you can be yellow, Miss Belgium, yours is green, and Mister Netherlands shall be blue! Like the stripes on his scarf."

Now that Fate had mentioned it, Netherlands realized that he wasn't wearing his scarf. "Where is my scarf?"

"Time has it! Don't worry; it's nice and safe here!" Fate shouted back. Time, as if on command, held up the scarf for all to see, as if it were some sort of trophy.

"Now, let us begin." Rolling the dice four times, he announced, "Time, you go first, Netherlands goes second, I go third, and Belgium goes last!"

Time stepped up to the table and rolled, receiving a four. Fate playfully moved the yellow car four spaces. "Ooh, that's a chance card, Time!"

The black-masked killer sighed, as though he were being pestered by a child. Taking a chance card, he said, "Free light blue ticket booth."

"Lucky! How about you take the magic show?" Fate placed a yellow booth at the "Magic Show" delicately. "Next is Netherlands!"

Netherlands watched as Fate rolled him a six. That landed his car at the "Puppet Show".

"Would you like to buy the Puppet Show for two Monopoly Junior dollars?" Fate asked mockingly, creating a sickly sweet tone only used by salespeople.

"Yes," Netherlands said immediately.

"A 'please' would have been nice, but I'll let you off the hook." Placing two of Netherlands' Monopoly dollars in the "bank", he took a blue booth and set it on the "Puppet Show".

"All right, I'm next!" Fate said, rolling a four and landing on "chance". The chance card that the killer received was a…

"Free dark blue ticket booth!" he cheered, placing a red booth at the "Loop the Loop". "Now, it's Miss Belgium's turn."

Belgium received a six, landing on the "Puppet Show".

"Oh dear. Your brother already bought that. Sorry, but you're going to have to pay him two dollars! Time, if you haven't done the math already, that's ten centimeters."

Netherlands watched as Time worked the levers on a machine. All of a sudden, his cage was jerked into the air. Belgium let out a small yelp.

"How interesting, Netherlands is a bit higher than Belgium right now... let's see how this goes!" Fate giggled and rolled the dice again, for Time's second turn.

Belgium looked up at Netherlands, desperately seeking reassurance from him, but her brother looked away, his face clouded with guilt. There was no way, no chance of getting out alive.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

"Are you positive that we'll be safe, bruder?" Liechtenstein asked.

Switzerland swallowed his bite of sandwich. "Why wouldn't we be? As long as we show no threat, we don't get caught in anything."

Liechtenstein clasped her hands together. "But that's when wars are going on. This is a killer going around. There are no sides, besides the killer and the victims."

"If we're neutral, then we're in the middle of being thrown in with the rest of the countries and being a killer," Switzerland said, taking another sandwich. "You shouldn't worry so much, Lili."

"But Vash…" Lili sighed. "The killer, Fate, is killing everyone, innocent or not, neutral or not. And no matter what, we're on the nations' side. We're part of the 'victims', aren't we?"

"We should keep our fear to ourselves, even though we could be targeted," Vash replied. "I, personally suspect Roderich; that snob could be more powerful than he looks –?"

"Vash," Lili said, taking hold of her brother's arm. "You'd tell me if you were one of the killers, right?"

Vash seemed to think for a moment, then he finally said, "Of course I would."

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

"Miss Belgium must pay Time two dollars! Ten centimeters down!"

Netherlands felt his stomach sink, then he was lurched up again. Belgium, being the unlucky final player, had already lost six dollars in total, making thirty centimeters lower.

She looked up at him, her face pale, but she mouthed, _I'm fine._

He hated that he was winning, but he had no control over it.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

Romania looked at Hungary, his usual mischievous smirk twisted into a scowl. "So you're telling me that since Roddy is living with his ex-boyfriend, you have no choice but to stay here?"

Hungary sighed irritably. "His name is Roderich, Vladimir. And Ludwig was never his boyfriend, and I doubt that they'll ever be together. The last part was correct, though."

"He'll always be Roddy to me. And I guess you can stay," Romania said. "There's a guest room that's open. Second door on the left, once you head upstairs."

"Thanks," Hungary said reluctantly. "Say, is Bulgaria staying here too?"

Romania, who was about to head upstairs himself, froze. "He's dead," he stated bluntly. "He killed himself."

"When?" Hungary asked, utterly horrified.

"After Russia died," Romania replied. Hungary saw that he was shaking violently. "He said that if Russia was defeated by Fate or Time, then it would only be a matter of time until everyone was taken out."

"Didn't you try to stop him?"

"I was too late." Romania walked away, up the stairs, and went into his room. Hungary heard the door slam shut.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

"Oh that's a chance card, Netherlands!" Fate called. "A free green booth! Here, have the bumper cars!"

Netherlands looked down at Belgium. She had done nothing but sink closer and closer to the acid. He wanted to call out to her, but he found out that his voice was caught in his throat.

"Paddle boats… I'll buy it!" He heard Fate say, and watched as he gave the bank two dollars, before putting a red booth on the paddle boats square.

"Now for Bella, here." Both Netherlands and Belgium tensed as the die was rolled. "A two. That lands you on chance! And your card says…" Fate snatched up a card. "The Green Line Railroad! Roll again!" He moved the green car to the matching railroad and rolled again. "A three! Congratulations, Bella, you have picked up fifteen dollars worth of spare change! Time, that would be seventy-five centimeters up Bella's side."

Netherlands felt himself being jerked down and found himself closer to his sister. She looked up at him, hope lighting up her eyes. He smiled ever so slightly.

Fate seemed to notice their exchange and cackled. "The game's not over yet, you know! Don't get your hopes up that easily!

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

Mr. Puffin tapped his talons against the table impatiently. "Hey you!" The butler of the Kirkland house turned to look at the bird. "Are you talking to me?"

"That's right," the puffin said. "So where's Leon? He left this morning and he hasn't been back until now."

"He is currently looking for Young Master Peter," Adrian replied.

"Has he called to check in or something?" Mr. Puffin asked, knowing that Norway constantly had Emil do so.

Adrian shook his head. "I trust that he is safe though."

Mr. Puffin narrowed his eyes in doubt, but acted nonchalant. "I just want to head home, and I can't do that without a reply."

"I see," Adrian said. "Excuse me; I have my duties to attend to."

The bird watched as Adrian left, sighing in irritation. "Get home already, Leon."

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

"Time, you landed on the water slide, and you pay me six dollars."

Bella was crying. The game had gone down after she had picked up the spare change. She now only had three dollars left.

Her brother looked down at her, knowing that he couldn't do anything. He, on the other hand, had twenty-seven dollars.

"Netherlands, you landed on paddle boats. You pay time four dollars. Twenty centimeters down." Fate sounded bored, since the game was going in a predetermined direction.

Netherlands was thrown down twenty centimeters, but it wasn't enough distance. Belgium looked up at him. "Abel… it'll be okay," she tried to reassure him.

But it wouldn't be okay. They both knew it.

"Ooh, I got six dollars in spare change," Fate said, not sounding excited at all.

Abel and Bella tensed as one, in fear for the next turn.

Fate rolled the dice.

"Three."

He moved the green car three spaces.

"How unfortunate."

The booth, the water slide, was owned by a red booth.

It cost exactly three Monopoly dollars.

"Okay, the game is over now!" Fate shouted. "The standings are: me, in first place with fifty-three dollars!" He seemed to wait for applause, but none came. "Next is Mr. Abel Segher, with twenty-three dollars! He will have a merciful death. And in third place is Time, with twenty-two dollars! Very close to Abel, I see. Finally in last place…" Abel knew that Fate paused to smirk. "Miss Bella Belgie. She will be given the merciless death," he finished, gesturing to the acid. "Time, if you will –?"

"Wait!" Abel cried.

Fate looked at him. "What could you possibly want? You both know that your capitals are destroyed, so you are both mortal right now, with no chance of survival. And you, Abel, are getting a merciful death. Tell me, what more do you want?"

It was true that they both knew they were mortal. They had both felt the destruction of their capitals. Abel gritted his teeth and announced, "Let me and Bella switch places."

Bella began to protest, but Fate cocked his head to the side. "Why would you want to do that?"

"To spare her any unneeded pain," Abel replied. "Give her my 'merciful' death. I'll take her place."

"Hmm…" Fate tapped his chin. "I suppose we can make those arrangements…"

Abel began to sigh in relief.

"Or not."

The chain holding Bella and Abel's cages in the air snapped, and they both dropped into the acid. Fate watched them, the mask's smile seeming to grow wider.

"That was fun, wasn't it, Time? Anyway, you can go now, your work here is done," Fate said. Time, nodded, bowed, and exited the room.

Meanwhile, Abel struggled to move his cage closer to Bella's. He could already feel himself start to fall apart, his lungs burning for air.

Bella looked at him and smiled happily, as if the pool full of acid was home to her. Abel couldn't help but smile back, despite the pain.

They reached out for each other, locking their hands together. Abel knew their time was up.

_Au revoir_, Bella mouthed to him.

He couldn't cry, his eyes burned too much with effort to see. So he closed his eyes, knowing that Bella was doing the same, and together, their souls walked the path to eternity.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

South Korea sat at his desk and sighed heavily. He had investigated all the suspicious places in Asia, and there was still no sign of Belgium and Netherlands.

"Investigating originated in Korea," he told himself. "You can do this. You're a natural!"

His phone rang. "Hello?" he said, expecting it to be someone from the search team.

"Why hello there, Yong Soo!" an electronic voice said. "I'm Fate, great to meet you too, and no, I'm not here to kill you!"

"That's new," Korea replied, a bit nervous, but happy that he wasn't going to die at a young age.

"Yes, quite. Want a hint?"

"Sure!"

"Think France. You know what, this is pointless. I'll give you the address."

"Thanks!" Korea said, grabbing a pen and paper, scribbling down what Fate told him. "So, why are you telling me all this?"

"Because I'm done," Fate said. "It's the truth, killer's word of honor. Just warning you though – you're already too late. Ta-ta!"

Yong Soo set the phone down. He knew that there probably wasn't that much hope in the first place, but hearing that he was too late was disappointing all the same.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

The search party arrived at the abandoned building as quickly as they could, scanning the place for any clues.

Yong Soo knew that there probably wasn't a chance in finding anything, considering that Fate had called him, an air of confidence lighting up his (or her?) words. Instead, he searched for the missing nations.

He entered a large room, one with an empty, large pool in it. He heard a heart-wrenching cry come from one side of the room and ran over.

"Peter…" Finland wailed, holding a sailor hat close to his heart. In front of him was a small skeleton. Yong Soo figured it was Sealand's.

"I'm sorry, Tino…" he tried to say. Finland didn't seem to hear over his weeping, so Yong Soo gave him a quick hug, just to comfort him. He knew that Sweden would take care of the rest.

"Yong Soo, over here," Italy said, from the other side of the room.

Already certain of what he was going to see, he approached Italy, leaving Finland with his son's remains.

In front of Italy were two skeletons, arranged so that one's skull was resting on the other's shoulder. Their hands were interlocked. The larger skeleton had a scarf wrapped around its neck.

"We found them," Yong Soo announced, but there was no victory in his voice. Only sorrow and despair.

**-AND THEY ALL DIE IN THE END-**

**And I'm done.**

**This is a shorter chapter comparing the previous ones, I'm surprised. I hope you enjoyed, like always. **

**Just a quick note, I'm not exactly sure whether skeletons can keep themselves together without having something stick the bones together, so I apologize in advance if I have my facts wrong. **

**I got it out before my school year started! So hopefully, I'll still be able to update as quickly as I can, but I don't have my own laptop, so it's difficult. Please forgive this poor author.**

**SHOUTOUTS: TheGrammarHawk, Purestrongpoem, Amy Kitty Katz, Hetalia Lover-Arthur, EmiCyanSayMii, Canadatheninja, RinzlerKitty94, peterpennykirkland, Kie Quies, ChibiNeko, and BigBrother! And of course, to all of you who are following this and/or have favorited this! **

**So you do realize that this has 54 reviews already? I was screaming my head off when I found out. Thank you all so, so much. **

**And we're about to reach Chapter Ten?! I didn't think it would go this far! **

**One day, I will personally meet all of you people and thank you properly. **

**Reviews sound nice, so please review!**


	10. The Official List of Alive Nations

**Some of my readers requested that an official list be made of who will be included in **_**And They All Die in the End**_**. I, being the generous and merciful author that I am (you can thank me later), created one.**

**They're in alphabetical order, so no, you won't be able to figure anything out.**

Austria

China

Cuba

Denmark

Egypt

Estonia

Finland

Germany

Greece

Hong Kong

Hungary

Iceland

India

Italy

Japan

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Norway

Poland

Prussia

Romania

Romano

South Korea

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Taiwan

Thailand

Turkey

Vietnam

**These are the remaining countries. The micronations tend to die when the country dies, unless the nation is taken over quickly (like in Sealand's case, Hong Kong got to the situation quickly… but he's dead now).**

**Thank you again for supporting this fanfiction. I estimate that this will be about thirty or so chapters, so no, this won't be ending soon.**


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